A New Friend, A New Foe
by Aria White
Summary: AU:  Post-Buu  After years of training in secret, a mysterious warrior will appear at the WMAT. But what happens when she runs into a band of the Earth's greatest fighters? What demons await her as she discovers her unknown heritage?
1. Chapter 1: Curious Encounters

**A New Friend, A New Foe**

AU: (Post-Buu) After years of training in secret, a mysterious warrior will appear at the World Martial Arts Tournament. But what happens when she runs into a band of the Earth's greatest fighters? What demons await her as she discovers her unknown heritage?

Dragonball GT and thereafter, Uub, the Black Star Dragonballs etc. are treated as nonexistent.

Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z. It belongs to Funimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV and Akira Toriyama. I merely own all original characters, events and moves created by said characters.

* * *

Author's Notes:

There are three major reasons for the existence of this story.

The first was the sheer need to finish a piece of writing. I wanted to create something worthwhile in a genre that is filled to the brim with mediocre fluff and rambling fantasies that never truly flourish. Fanfiction in and of itself is a complicated art (that is, if the writer seeks to create something of substance, rather than just mindless Yaoi, or something of the sort.) There's canon, and you need to understand the characters deeply enough to make it tangible. You will hopefully find no spelling or grammatical errors in this story. If you do find any, please tell me!

The second reason was my love for Dragonball Z. I adore everything about it, down to the smallest subtleties; the massive fight scenes, the gripping tension between characters, all of it is remarkably brilliant and masterful. Yes, I even love the ever-present loophole of the Dragonballs, and the fact that nothing has a consequence. The way Akira Toriyama developed the characters and plot blew me away from Episode One. Vegeta is a particular favorite of mine. His battle between his light and shadow within himself always intrigued me. Trunks, of course, is another favorite. He isn't as developed in the Anime/Manga as I would like him to be, but the fact that he isn't enables tremendous extrapolation of his traits, which I take full advantage of.

The thing that's so great about DBZ is that anything can happen as long as you can provide a somewhat believable backdrop, (I mean come on… the entire Majin Buu ordeal popped out of nowhere) which brings me to my third reason. The only thing I ever found missing in this masterpiece of a show was a strong female. Yeah, Android 18, Pan and Videl kind of fit the bill at times, but none of them can keep up with the big dogs. In enters my OC, Aria. Aria is the first actual female that packs a Saiyan punch, but she has a few other roles in this story as well. Too many times has a Mary Sue waltzed into a story as Trunks' love interest, so I wanted to depart from that as much as possible.

This story has been a labor of pure, unadulterated love. I knew full well that this would not reach a great deal of viewers or readers, and that was never the intention to begin with. All I can hope is that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

* * *

It was a bright and sunny day in May on the first afternoon of the World Martial Arts Tournament. Her long, thick black hair swished lightly over her gaunt cheeks and slender frame in the light breeze. Thousands of people lined the boardwalk, twittering away about the results of the preliminaries. A few stopped and stared at her, but they quickly scurried off after she shot them a curt glance. She looked down at her hands, examining them. Her black leather gloves were worn from training, and still had specks of interplanetary dust on the knuckles.

For reasons she couldn't understand, she smiled fondly at her ring, a trinket she'd possessed since her infancy. The metallic Dragon's sapphires glinted in the sunlight, matching her deep blue eyes. She never knew where it had come from, or why she had it, but it gripped at her heart with familial energy. For that, she never removed it.

Mr. Satan paraphernalia was everywhere on the strip, his face grinning smugly from the banners and t-shirts. She couldn't help but chuckle.

As she walked, she gazed wistfully at the clouds. Her parents would be arriving on their new planet in the Rention system soon. She smiled at the thought. Nothing was holding her back now.

She approached the Finalists registration, a newfound resolve in her chest.

"Excuse me,"

The official looked up from the table, adjusting his glasses.

"Er, yes, can I help you?"

"I'm here to sign in."

He blinked twice in surprise.

"Name?"

"Aria White."

He fumbled through his papers, eyes darting about the parchment.

"Ah yes, here."

With a swift gesture, he flicked his book open and scrawled her name down.

"Go on then."

With a nod, Aria entered the Finalists Pagoda.

It was quite lavish. Each wall was lined with fresh spring grass and intricately planted shrubbery. The freshly polished white tile glinted in the sun, with a few scuffmarks barely visible from recent training. She extended her senses to scan the courtyard.

A few tiny power levels were scattered across the foyer; the amateurs. One was on her hind left, a fat, balding man with a gorilla-like grunt. Another was closer to the back of the courtyard, surrounded by other miniscule levels. This one was a tall, well-built fighter, flanked by two kinky women on each side.

The last of the small levels was to her right, behind the wall. She could almost hear his cocky laughter. It must be Mr. Satan.

Aria giggled. She took great pleasure at imagining all of the ways she would humiliate him in the Finals.

She looked back over her shoulder, staring intently at the entrance to the pagoda.

_Where are they?_

* * *

A small, shorthaired girl was running freely up the road, happily holding an ice cream cone. She whooshed past the bystanders, approaching the arms of a tall, muscular man.

"Grandpa! Grandpa!"

The girl flew into his arms, giggling as he scooped her up.

"Hey, Pan," he said softly.

"Grandma says I can fight, as long as I'm good," she chirped.

Goku flashed his trademark grin.

"All right!"

The Z fighters strode side by side up the road, taking in the sights of the tournament.

At the front of the pack were two boys, each in their late teens. One had scruffy black hair and coal eyes, and was gleefully enjoying some French fries. The other was topped with lavender locks, and an uneasy smile.

The purple-haired boy glanced backward.

"I don't know about this, Goten," he murmured.

The scraggly haired boy chomped down on a fry.

"Trunks, come on. You may not even have to fight him."

"But what if I do?"

"He may hate it at first, but who knows? He might even be proud of you."

"You don't know that."

Trunks took another look behind him, catching another glimpse.

"You know how he is, Goten," he hissed.

Goten looked rearward with a frown, staring at the arrogant Saiyan that was Trunks' father.

Vegeta walked as proudly as ever, wearing his ever-present grimace and his arms loosely folded. His dark hair spiked upward, and a distinctive widows peak cut across his brow. A sharp twinge of annoyance made him tense up as Goten's eyes met his.

Goten quickly looked away, still feeling the burn of Vegeta's intense stare.

"I suppose it's too late to back out now."

Trunks sighed with a shrug.

They walked up to the registration kiosk.

Aria felt a pang as major power levels entered her field.

_They're here._

She started towards the entrance, squinting for a glimpse at the newfound challengers.

A different sensation hit Aria when she saw them. She immediately felt a resonance, without knowing why. Suddenly, Trunks glanced in her direction, his light blue eyes meeting hers. She stood dazed for a moment; something was so familiar about him.

_Get a grip, _she scolded to herself. With a quick shake of her head, she was back in focus.

Trunks continued to stare, cocking his head to the side with curiosity.

"Who's that?" he murmured.

Goten looked up from the registration table, eyes darting about.

"Who, what?"

"Her," Trunks pointed toward the middle of the courtyard.

Goten peered at her.

"Hm, I don't know. I wonder what's she's doing in the Finalist's area? Maybe she's one of the maids?"

Trunks gave Goten a quizzical look.

"Yeah, with that fighting outfit she's _got _to be one of the maids."

Aria giggled as she watched them.

She quickly got back to work, carefully analyzing the power levels of the warriors.

The one she had made eye contact earlier was her closest match, their levels nearly identical at resting rate. Tapping into his deeper levels was surprisingly difficult, as she had never been confronted with someone as strong as herself. However, the kid next to him was considerably weaker, even at his inward levels of power.

Her eyes drifted towards the back of the pack. She gasped.

The tall man with the goofy grin holding the little girl was incredibly strong, much more so than the first two warriors. He had untouchable levels of power within his layers, surpassing her peak threefold. She almost reeled backward from the impact of his field.

Suddenly, something else caught her attention.

_The little girl!_

Her level was about a third of Aria's, and she was only a toddler!

Aria stepped back in surprise.

_Could she be a finalist?_

Another signal went off within the group, diverting her focus again.

The man with the widow's peak next to the tall one had increased his power level slightly. He was much shorter than the strong one, but his muscles were more defined, sharper. The man was far off Aria's range, and his maximum was much stronger than her own. She immediately sensed a regal presence in this one, a tough determination that the other warriors lacked.

Her skin tingled with excitement. What luck that five fighters of this caliber ended up in the same tournament. She took in a slow breath and began to advance apprehensively toward the new challengers, taking great care to suppress her ki, as to appear more docile.

"Look Trunks! She's coming this way," Goten taunted.

Trunks shot him an indignant look.

Aria greeted the pack with a confident smile.

"Hi! You must be the other finalists."

They all turned at once, searching the girl for a power level out of habit.

"Yeah, that's us. What's your name?" Goku asked cheerily.

"I'm Aria, I'm a finalist too."

"Really? Wow, you must be a great fighter."

Vegeta rolled his eyes.

"This is my first tournament. I can't believe I'm in the finals!" Aria said with mock enthusiasm. "So what do you guys go by?"

"Well, I'm Son Goku, and the grumpy one here is Vegeta."

Vegeta mumbled an unintelligible greeting under his breath.

"This one's my son, Goten." Goku gestured to the scruffy, black haired boy.

Goten shifted awkwardly.

"And this is Pan."

He propped the small toddler up on his hip. Pan hid behind Goku's shirt, occasionally peeking out at the new face.

"Hi, Pan."

The girl buried her head into Goku's chest.

"Aw, It's okay," Aria cooed, holding out her hand to the girl.

Pan shifted the shirt just below her eyes, and examined Aria's hand. She slowly reached out, allowing Aria to softly grasp it.

"Hi," the girl mumbled from beneath the cloth.

"And this is Trunks, Trunks Briefs," Goku grinned slyly.

Humor aside, the name struck a chord. She'd definitely heard it before.

"Trunks, huh. Strange…Have we met before?" she probed, her eyes fixed on his.

He stared, perplexed, scratching the back of his head.

"No, I don't think so."

"Oh."

Vegeta sniggered from the back, causing Trunks to turn a deep shade of scarlet.

"Well it was great to meet all of you," she chirped, "Hopefully I'll see you in a match!"

Aria looked at Trunks one last time and turned on her heel towards the stadium.

"Yeah! It was nice to meet you too," said Goku with a wave.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Vegeta broke into a cackle.

"Looks like you've become quite the ladies man," he jeered.

"Shut up," Trunks chuckled.

Goku was about to interject, when a sweet aroma caught his nose. He sniffed the air, catching traces of hotcake and deep fried rolls.

"Oh man! That smells great. I'm starving!"

Vegeta caught the scent next. Without a word, he immediately took off in the direction of the scent, followed by Goku hot on his heels.

"Wait up!" Goten chased after them.

Trunks followed at a lope, wondering what she'd meant.


	2. Chapter 2: Golden Boy

"Ladies and gentleman!" the announcer's voice boomed over the loudspeakers, "Welcome to the 28th World Martial Arts Tournament. The results are in from the preliminary round. Are you ready to meet your finalists?"

The crowd roared, the noise reverberating throughout the stadium.

"Alrighty then, let's get started!"

Loud music played over the intercom, setting up a corny entrance for the fighters.

Vegeta glowered from his table inside the pagoda.

"How droll," he muttered as he slurped the last of his Ramen Noodles.

Goku, Pan and Goten were busy finishing up the rolls, happily munching away.

Trunks sat quietly, resting his chin on his hand. He gazed out of the window to the stadium, watching the audience swell with anticipation.

"_Have we met before?"_

The voice drifted around in his head.

"Trunks!"

_Huh. That's odd, it almost sounds like…_

"Yo, lover boy!" Goten shouted.

Trunks sat bolt upright. "Huh, what?"

"You're still thinking about that girl, aren't you?" he snickered.

"Quit bugging me," Trunks retorted.

"Whatever, man. Come on, its time to go."

They left the table, leaving a hefty tip for the waiters. The butlers stared at the massive piles of dishes and Zeni left by the Saiyans, frozen with awe.

The warriors approached the entrance to the ring, stepping in line behind the other finalists.

"Ladies and gentleman, your first finalist, hailing from South City, Captain Chicken!"

A small, skinny fighter in a chicken costume let out an ear-piercing screech, causing the audience to recoil.

The announcer continued on, calling out the names of the oncoming amateurs.

A rather flamboyant fighter, Otokosuki, eyed Trunks as he passed, cocking a flirty smile. Trunks' cheeks burned with embarrassment.

"And straight out of West City, Vegeta!"

Vegeta strode past Trunks, grunting dismissively in his direction. He walked into the ring, his arms folded. Trunks looked down and exhaled sharply, attempting to take his mind off of the annoying gesture. Suddenly, he heard rapid footsteps. He turned to see Aria sprinting across the courtyard, skidding to a halt behind the pack of Z fighters.

"Am I late?" she gasped.

"No, you just barely made it," said Goku.

The announcer began calling the Z fighters up to the stage.

Aria took this as another chance to observe them. She surveyed their steps, trying to get a feel for their styles of fighting through their gate. Goku was first to be called, after Vegeta. Aria cursed herself for missing Vegeta's entrance. He was the one she wanted to see the most.

She instantly recognized Goku's innate strength as he walked, but it was paired with an oddly oblivious demeanor. It was as if he didn't consciously recognize how powerful he was, but some part of him still knew it. Pan was next. As she dawdled, Aria sensed a headstrong nature within the child, despite her outer timidity. She ran and hid behind her grandfather's leg, peeping out with giddy excitement at the audience. Goten was, expectedly, lacking in character. He had the blandest, most shallow personality she'd ever seen in a fighter at his skill level. The power he had was nothing more than a plaything to him.

_What a waste,_ she thought.

Her gaze shifted to Trunks as his name was called. Trunks was by far the most intriguing. He had tremendous inner power, easily rivaling if not surpassing her own. He tread with confidence, but his eyes told a different story. While primarily happy, almost captivated at the thought of a challenge, they held minute traces of shame in them. Aria was curious; a new mystery was unraveling. Her ears pricked up as her name was called.

The contestants were all in the ring, and the drawing was about to begin. Angry bellows and battle cries were going off around the ring, all of which were coming from the weaker fighters. Aria thought for a moment, disparaging her opponents. She had a mischievous grin on her face as she moved to sit down on the freshly polished tile. With a sigh, she closed her eyes and slowly breathed in and out in rhythm. Trunks eyed her inquisitively. Unbeknownst to him, Aria was tapping into another hidden vessel of power. Since she was little, she'd been endowed with odd abilities that she would exercise during her clandestine training sessions. She was normally highly cautious of using this skill, due to her strong moral compass. Today was different. As she breathed, her mind extended to those of the weaker finalists, along with the host.

All of the substandard contestants were called in a row, by Aria's silent puppetry, drawing their respective numbers. Each one took up a spot in an empty bracket. The stadium grew anxious.

"Don't worry, ladies and gentlemen. I'm sure a match will be made soon," the announcer reassured the crowd.

"Get on with it!" a voice called from the stands.

More people joined in a chorus, booing at the stage.

Aria continued her breathing.

"Trunks Briefs, you're up next," said the host, stamping out the dissonance.

Trunks walked to the box and began to fumble. As he closed in one of the spheres, an odd sensation went through his fingertips.

He blinked in surprise, and found himself loosening his grip.

His arm wandered towards the ball to the left of the one he had just grabbed, grasping it firmly. When he pulled it out, the number read "16," landing him in the last open bracket.

"How bizarre," he muttered.

Aria's brow furrowed. He noticed the change in movement. She scolded herself for not expecting that. There was no need to risk her telepathic advantage over something silly like this. Her eyelids fluttered open as she ceased her mind ritual.

"Well, folks, now we'll have to start seeing some pairings, am I right?" said the announcer, a bit shakily. The crowd let out a collective cheer. The raucous intensified as the matches were made, each of the Saiyan gang being paired with the amateurs on the board. Trunks remained unaccompanied in his bracket. He tapped his foot impatiently, staring off into space.

"Ladies and gentlemen we are at our second to last pick, the one who determines the final two matches of the first round,"

Trunks looked at the board, and his heart dropped. The last two contestants were Vegeta and Aria. He looked back and forth at the two warriors, Vegeta catching his glance first.

Trunks had wanted a real chance to beat his father since he was a young boy, but was filled with apprehension at the thought of finally getting it. Vegeta was too proud for his own good. He would settle for nothing less than everything Trunks could throw at him, but if Trunks managed to beat him, his ego would suffer quite a blow. He shifted his gaze to Aria. Outwardly, she would be the preferred challenge, a nice easy win to start things off. But something made Trunks think twice.

"Aria, it looks like you're the decision maker," the host said slowly, playing up the drama.

She rolled her eyes and stepped forward, squinting as she reached for the bottom of the container. As she prepared the final tweak, she stopped. For once in her life, she would let fate decide this match. In spite of herself, she let go of her control, and felt aimlessly around the box. She picked the ball at random, and raised it up. She beamed when she saw the number.

"That's number 17. It looks like you'll be fighting our former Junior Champion!"

Aria froze.

_Former Junior Champion?_

She whirled around to face Trunks, and then she knew.

* * *

It was the 25th World Martial Arts Tournament. The then 8-year-old Aria had saved up all of her money from working in the lab, and had found a way to get a ticket into the junior division matches. She watched with wonder as two extraordinary fighters dominated the competition, barely breaking a sweat as they shot their opponents out of the ring with little more than a flick.

One of the children was a playful little tyke. He had black, messy hair and spun circles around his irritated opponents. Aria recognized him to be Goten.

The other had a tough and mischievous look about him, topped with purple hair and piercing blue eyes: Trunks.

The final match came swiftly, and the two miniature juggernauts were finally going to fight. It was a sight to behold. They began with a flurry of lightning-fast blows, dancing about the ring in a tornado of punches and kicks. The audience stood agape, while Aria intently followed their exchange of hits. Soon, they took to the air, continuing their rapid burst. After an impressive display of strength and stamina, the boys began to grow weary of their battle. The boy she now knew as Trunks quickly became irritated with the banality of the fight. His power level began to spike to new highs Aria could have never imagined. With a blinding flash of light, the purple haired boy erupted into a blur of gold. His hair turned blonde, and spiked on end from the energy pulses. The golden aura encased him in a power field, giving off incredible amounts of energy. The other, Goten, quickly followed suit, and they were at it again, consumed in a blaze of gold fury.

Aria beamed at Trunks with a new brilliance. The golden boy who she had longed to challenge was standing right in front of her. Her many years of intense training would pay off.

At last she would put her true power to the test.


	3. Chapter 3: Discovery

The first few matches went just as Aria expected. Each man she had matched with a Z fighter was easily picked off without much delay. It was now down to the last two fights of the first round. While Goten was busy laughing at his stooge of an opponent, Captain Chicken, Aria decided to strike up a little conversation with her unsuspecting rival. He was leaning against one of the posts that held up the Pagoda, looking distrait as he watched the fight.

"So, it looks like we'll be fighting soon," she said as she approached, with a hint of condescension.

He glanced at her with surprise.

"I suppose so," he replied absently.

She flashed a devious smile.

"I just wanted to let you know that you shouldn't go easy on me."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Huh?"

"You heard me."

"Well, I…"

"Just because I'm a girl, it doesn't mean I'm any less of a fighter," she snapped.

Trunks stepped away, taken aback. She moved closer, raising a finger just a few centimeters from his nose.

"And if you have any doubts that I'm not as strong as you are, forget them."

He was plastered against the post now, desperately trying to avoid unwanted conflict.

"I'll see you in the ring."

She backed off, turning and walking to the stadium in a huff. The feedback from the microphone rang shrilly over the loudspeakers as Captain Chicken was catapulted into the stadium wall beside her. She continued on without a flinch.

"You've seen the competition heat up like a volcano here folks, and now it's the final match of the first round!" announced the host. "A newcomer from the hills near South City that stunned in the preliminaries will be facing off against a former champion. It's Aria White vs. Trunks Briefs, Are you ready?"

The crowd roared to life, ready to see some action after the disappointingly boring prior matches.

"Here they are!"

Everything Trunks had ever learned about fighting was telling him that this would be a simple match, but a gripping feeling of doubt was tugging at him. She was so brash, yet he felt as if it was warranted. But it couldn't be. After all, she was only human.

The warriors entered on opposite sides of the ring, stopping about fifteen feet away from one another. Aria stared Trunks down with a penetrative gaze, while he shifted uncomfortably into his warm up stretching. She was sensing the vigor he'd had when he fought as a junior champion, but it was dulled somewhat.

Aria breathed in deeply.

"Trunks," she addressed him sharply.

The host noticed the tension, and decided to slip the microphone towards her to catch her opening statement.

He raised his head from stretching.

"I must confess that I haven't been completely honest with you," she said, noticing her words coming through on the loudspeakers. The crowd rustled with anticipation.

_So she was hiding something, _he thought.

He righted himself from his exercise, and nodded for her to continue.

She sighed, and began her speech.

"I am not just another fighter, coming here to win a paycheck through pointless savagery."

That caught Vegeta's attention from the sidelines. He pricked up and surveyed her carefully as she spoke.

"I am a warrior. It's always run through me, as if ingrained in me from birth. Now that my parents are gone, far away in a distant star system, I'm finally able to show the world who I am, who I've always been."

She tensed and readied herself to release her ki.

"And you, someone I've seen fight before in the championships of this very tournament will bear its witness. You should recognize what I'm about to do, as I've learned this little technique from you, golden boy."

_Golden boy?_

Hundreds of thoughts were going through Trunks' head, not one coming to a valid conclusion.

Vegeta's eyes narrowed. He tried to remember what miraculous technique she could have possibly learned in Trunks' fight with Goten ten years ago. It was all a blur.

"Artemis, Lilina, this is for you," she murmured.

With a colossal surge of energy, she exploded into a blast of gold, blue and white. Lighting currents surrounded her limbs as her hair whipped upright, bleaching blonde as if soared above her. Her calm cerulean eyes turned fiery turquoise, and her muscles bulged from her frame. Her body surged with power, the pure energy radiating through her veins. All of the limits she'd placed upon herself had been disintegrated in the physical and emotional blast she had exuded. The raw power filled her with fervor, serving as her last rebellion against her bondage. When the dust cleared, the crowd stared in fear and awe at her new appearance. Trunks staggered backward, mouth agape.

Goku and Goten were equally dazed, and Pan was shivering behind Goku's leg.

"That's n-not possible…" Vegeta stammered. "She can't be!"

Trunks looked desperately at his friends for an answer, all of which had the same confounded expression.

Aria took in her first breath as a Super Saiyan 2, relishing the liberation.

She saw Trunks, as well as the other fighters, staring at her in wonder.

"Don't act so surprised," she said haughtily.

Vegeta quickly recovered from his shock.

"You! Girl!" he snapped, stepping forward into the field.

Aria glanced sideways at him, slightly irked by the interruption.

"I'm aware that this entrance is a little dramatic, but I would like to start my fight." Her words reeked of an arrogance Vegeta knew all too well. He growled, but held his tongue as he surveyed her up and down. Her body was built very much like a Saiyan female, minus the tail, and her hair was dark and thick like his. Then something caught his eye, something he would have never expected. A Dragon with blue gems for eyes was sitting atop her ring finger.

"Get ready, golden boy!" she shouted.

Vegeta could only look on in silence as she lunged at Trunks.

Despite his earlier distress, Trunks rapidly changed into his Super Saiyan form, readying himself for her blows.

She grinned, pleased that she was able to get him into the fight so quickly. When her fist connected with his upturned forearm, a small shockwave was sent across the ring. She assaulted with a whirlwind of punches and kicks, each barely blocked by Trunks. He was just able to dodge a kick directed at his left cheek, and retaliated with a hefty punch towards Aria's stomach. She grabbed his fist with both hands, stopping it just short of her abdomen. With a lithe movement, she kicked upwards, cocking Trunks' jaw.

The crowd ogled at the spectacle, too astonished to make a sound. By this point, the host had passed out, and was lying listless on the grass surrounding the ring.

Vegeta stared at Aria as she fought.

_Could it really be possible?_

By now, he should have realized that anything is possible.

Her facial structure was almost exact in likeness, and her body was undeniably Saiyan. She was agile, flexible, and her form was impeccable. Her power was enormous, and there was no way he could have overlooked it if she'd reached this state before.

As she continued her spar, Vegeta realized that she must have experience in Super Saiyan form. Just unleashing it at will is a mark of past encounters with the state.

Just then, Trunks was catapulted backward towards the edge of the ring from a strike to the right side of his face. Before he knew it, Aria was behind him again at blinding speed, kicking him forward again. Trunks regained his footing and thrashed an arm backward, knocking Aria sideways across the stage. Before she could recover, Trunks slammed down hard on her back, crushing her into the tile. He lack of a fighting partner all of those years bedeviled her greatly. Dealing out blows was easy enough, but anticipating when and where Trunks was going to strike was unbelievably difficult. Using her arms as a brace, she was able to lift herself out of the way before he could hit her again. They parted from their burst, once again facing each other from separate sides of the stage. They were both panting heavily, and Aria clutched at her back. Blood was trickling from her lip to her chin. Her off-planet training had proved to be of great help in her fight with Trunks. The elements she'd weathered in her sessions on Alpha Six and Groen had increased her stamina exponentially. She was able to perfect her use of his glowing technique on Groen, and her evasiveness was heightened on Alpha Six with the meteor storms. It was her only defense against his attacks.

They were about to leap forward…

"Stop!"

Vegeta was walking towards them now, a deep expression on his face. She scowled, and glanced briskly between him and her opponent.

"What do you want now?" Aria growled.

"When exactly did you learn how to turn into a Super Saiyan?"

"Excuse me?"

"Don't play dumb."

His directness disconcerted her.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh please," he scoffed, "You know perfectly well what I'm talking about."

Aria was nonplussed, but she did not let down her guard.

"Look, I don't know what your problem is, and frankly I don't care. But you are once again inhibiting my fight. We will talk afterwards. If you think what you have to say is still important and relevant, you'll remember it by the time I'm done here."

Vegeta was stunned by her rudeness. His blood began to simmer.

"Trunks!" he said suddenly.

Trunks looked puzzlingly at his father.

"You are not to attack this girl until my conversation is finished, understood? I want her undivided attention."

Never once had his father ordered him to stop an attack, unless he was interfering in a battle. He nodded grudgingly, not being so bold as to disobey him now.

Vegeta looked back at Aria.

"There, you now have no distraction. Answer me!"

She clenched her fists with fury.

"How dare you!"

Vegeta smirked.

"I dare."

Aria did not know what to do at that point. If she attacked Trunks, it would be foul play. If she attacked Vegeta, she would be disqualified. Her only choice was to answer.

"I still don't know what you're talking about," she repeated slowly.

Vegeta's eyes grew fiery.

"You can't possibly say that you have no clue that I'm referring to your transformation."

"Wait, are you talking about this?'" she asked, gesturing to her hair and aura.

Vegeta slapped a hand to his forehead.

"No, I'm referring to your choice in wardrobe. Your stupidity amazes me. Of course I'm talking about that!"

She rolled her eyes.

"Why are you even asking me? Power Glow is a technique I learned from him," she said, gesturing to Trunks, "I gather you're his old man. You should know all about it."

He was about to protest, when he noticed her usage of 'Power Glow' as nomenclature.

"Wait, you actually call it "Power Glow?" he said cynically.

"You call it 'Super Saiyan,'" she scorned, emphasizing the quotations around 'Super Saiyan', "It makes no sense. 'Power Glow' seems pretty fitting, I think."

Vegeta cocked his head, bemused by her ignorance. He then remembered her ring.

"Then where did you get that ring?" he pointed to her ring finger.

She glanced at it dismissively.

"I've had it since I was born. I don't know where it came from. What's it you anyway?"

"Your mother's name is Selera, am I correct?" he snapped.

Aria shook her head. What a peculiar non sequitur. This guy was obviously delusional, spouting off queer names that she had never heard of.

Trunks stood wordlessly on the sidelines.

"You've got the wrong kid. My parents are Artemis and Lilina White, and I have no knowledge of anyone by that name. Are we done here?"

"Not until you quit blatantly lying to me," he replied brusquely.

Whether it was Vegeta's remarks, the shooting pain in her back, or her heightened rage due to her Super Saiyan form, that comment put her over the edge.

"Do you honestly think I would try and lie?" she cried, glaring at her accuser with rage. "That would serve no purpose for either of us. It would only serve to make this situation that much more aggravating. I would only lie if I had something to hide, and I am not hiding anything anymore. For years my parents told me to lie, constantly drilling it into my head that it's a sin to be who I am. I've still not forgiven them for it. Now you accuse me of lying, after I have revealed _everything_ in this match_; _it's abominable."

Vegeta was in shock. Of all of the things to set her off, he hadn't expected that to be the trigger.

"As for your questions, they are absurd. _Are we done_?"

His temperature rose to a boiling point.

"No we are not!" he bellowed, "That little speech is not going to dissuade me. Since you wear that crest, there is no way in hell you don't know. That ring is the crest of a premiere Saiyan bloodline. Ring any bells?"

Aria was completely flummoxed.

"NO! It doesn't!" she shouted, her arms flailing about in the air.

For once, Vegeta stopped his barrage. He checked her face, and saw no traces of dishonesty. She was genuinely clueless. In all likelihood, she thought becoming a Super Saiyan was nothing more than a fighting technique, as she had referred to it earlier. Suddenly, a disturbing thought plagued Vegeta.

"Do you know you are a Saiyan?" he asked calmly.

"You keep on using that term. What is a Saiyan?" she responded, puzzled.

Vegeta's fear had been realized.

"You really don't know," he breathed.

"Now you're getting the picture. I'll figure this out later; in the meantime, this conversation is over," she said gruffly, turning back towards the dumbfounded Trunks.

"I'm continuing this match. Are you ready?" she said with a trace of unease.

Trunks thought for a moment. He didn't really care about the tournament anymore, as the chance to fight his father would arise eventually. It was mere sport for him, but his Saiyan instincts begged him to fight her. She was another of his kind, mysteriously ending up on earth. She had no knowledge of the Saiyan race, or the source of her miraculous power. It was a fascinating new challenge. But his inquisitive, logical side swayed him away. Vegeta had just broken her concentration considerably. She needed to know who she really was, and that couldn't happen as long as she was in this state. He wanted answers as much as she did, and therefore couldn't put his full focus on the fight. With that, he dropped his stance.

"No."

It was as if Aria was his by a thunderbolt.

"What?" she whispered.

Trunks shrugged his shoulders, powering down to his normal form.

"I forfeit."


	4. Chapter 4: History

The stadium was silent. The host was sitting limply in the grass. His hands were shaky as he pulled the microphone to his lips.

"Well, folks," he said dizzily, "I guess that's the end of the first round. We'll see you tomorrow for the second round."

He dropped the microphone to the ground as he fainted again.

The crowd began to murmur at Aria's win, but it never rose above a hush.

Aria stood unmoved with a stoic stare, reverting to her normal state. The stadium around her seemed to fade into oblivion. She didn't know what to feel. What she had been working for all her life had just ended in a forfeit. In spite of that, she felt a warm relief, without fully knowing why.

Trunks approached her, radiating a warm sympathy. She sensed his presence.

"Why?" she asked softly, without looking up.

Oddly, Trunks smiled.

"Because this isn't the fight you were meant to have," he said.

Trunks knew that Vegeta had thrown her completely off, and she was in no condition to continue a proper match. She gazed up at him, and smiled back in tacit respect.

Vegeta floated up to the ring.

"What did you go and do that for?" he growled.

Aria and Trunks both tensed simultaneously, the small moment of calm broken by Vegeta's entrance. Trunks was about to object, when Aria raised her hand to shush him.

She turned to face Vegeta.

"He did the honorable thing," she said, "By breaking our shared concentration, you ended the fight, not him."

Vegeta would have retorted, had she not been absolutely right.

She put her hands on her hips.

"Now, just what is this 'Saiyan' thing?"

Vegeta nearly cringed at her ignorance. Before he could answer, a sharp female voice cut through the air.

"Trunks!"

Trunks pinched his eyebrows together.

"Mom, this is hardly the time," he groaned.

Bulma Briefs, head of Capsule Corp was stomping across the green to the stage. The other Saiyans, a little girl, a short man, a taller, green man, a young couple, and another woman her age walked silently behind her. Aria tipped her head sideways, examining the new individuals. Trunks introduced them by name as they walked.

Bulma was a tall, middle-aged, thin, blue-haired woman with an unshakeable confidence. She was dressed in business casual attire, and wearing a scowl. The little girl at her side, Bra, was another curious toddler, also topped with blue locks. Krillin, the shorter man, had an odd black haircut, and was comedic in overall appearance. Piccolo was much more serious, a frown on his green face. The other woman, Chi-Chi, had a vague similarity to Goten, so she gathered that she was his mother. Gohan and Videl were mellower than Aria would have expected for a young couple, but they still had some sparkle left in their eyes.

The sizeable gang walked briskly to the ring, all of them fixated on Aria. Bulma flashed a glare at Trunks.

"What in the world is going on, Trunks?" she demanded, "Why did you forfeit?"

Trunks' eyes flickered to his father for an instant, and then at the ground.

Her probing gaze shifted to Vegeta.

"You had a hand in this, didn't you?"

He said nothing.

The group collectively stared, instantly on edge. Vegeta was not one to stop a fight.

Bulma's face softened, and then hardened again when her eyes landed on Aria.

"I demand to know who you are," she barked.

Aria almost backed away, in spite of herself.

"I'm Aria, Aria White," she said nervously.

"And _how_ is it that you got my son to quit? It certainly wasn't that little light show, and it had better not be blackmail. I'm the CEO of a top corporation you know, and I'm not afraid of—"

"Mom, wait a minute," Trunks interjected, stepping in between the two.

"It was my decision, and I made it for a good reason."

Bulma let out a 'humph.

"Then let's hear it."

Trunks went on to recount the entirety of the battle. He explained the ring, and the names Vegeta had spoken of, glancing toward his father now and again. Aria chimed in on occasion, letting them know of her confusion. The group listened intently, trying to get a grasp on what had happened. They were stunned by the pivotal nature of the battle. To them it had all been a blur of bewilderment, random questions and angry exchanges.

"Didn't your parents tell you anything?" asked Bulma.

"No," Aria replied, "They always called me 'their little treasure from the stars,' and told me I was brought to them by the heavens. I never took it seriously, thinking it was a metaphor…"

Aria tried to comprehend her situation. Had her entire life been a lie? Had her parents known that she wasn't human this whole time, and never told her? Her hands balled into fists, her fingernails digging into her palms.

"But if they knew, it would be something they'd keep from me," she growled.

Bulma mulled over the possibilities in her head.

"Do you have anything else that you don't know where it came from?" she asked.

Aria pondered for a minute. Then she remembered.

"Yes, I do."

"What is it?"

Besides the ring, she had kept another odd object. A small, ovular chip had also been with her, but no one knew its origins. It was inscribed with odd symbols on each side, and an insertion point similar to earth's gaming chips. Every expert on electronic hardware she had consulted was baffled. Aria went on to explain the details of the chip. Bulma beamed at her fortune, spiritedly snapping her fingers.

"Honey, you've come to the right woman. Being the CEO of Capsule Corp, I know a thing or two about high-tech."

Aria's face lit up.

"No one's been able to make heads or tails of it. You'll actually help me?"

Bulma smirked.

"Of course, I'm the best there is. My dad and I once fixed up a Namekian cruiser, so cracking this chip should be cake."

"Nameki-what?"

"Oh, Piccolo can explain that later, he's Namekian himself."

Aria stared at the tall, green man.

Vegeta had enough of the delays.

"Can we just get on with—"

"Oh pipe down. I'm sure Aria wants answers just as much as you do," Bulma snapped, instantly silencing Vegeta, "Besides, we can all talk this out over dinner back at Capsule."

Aria tilted her head. "Isn't that in West City?"

"Yeah, but with my jet we could be there in a couple hours. And you can fly right?"

Aria nodded.

"I'll need to get my chip from the hotel room, but I can be back here in about a half an hour. I'll follow your jet."

"Nonsense, Mr. Impatient over here seems to want to talk with you, and I want to learn more about you if I'm going to dissect this chip. Besides, you're hurt," she gestured to Aria's emerging bruise on her back and side.

Aria winced. She'd almost forgotten about that.

"Right."

"Would you like us to take you?"

"No, I'll be alright. I've had worse."

"Okay, but be back soon. It's getting late."

Aria nodded. The Z fighters waved her off as she took to the air, her mind spinning like a top.

Piccolo spoke first.

"Are you sure we can trust her?"

"Piccolo, she's had quite a time of it today," said Bulma, "I doubt she'd pass up an opportunity like this."

"That's not what I meant."

He gazed up at the sky.

"I know she'll come back. She'd be stupid not to. But can she really be that far in the dark on this?"

"From what I saw in the ring, she has no idea," said Trunks, "She didn't even know that she was a Super Saiyan, calling it something strange."

Piccolo didn't know whether to ease up or become more cautious at this.

"That doesn't prove anything."

Goku chimed in.

"Hey, it's not that farfetched. I find that becoming a Super Saiyan is like a more permanent version of the Kaio Ken technique. Ten times the Kaio Ken is only a bit below Super Saiyan level."

Vegeta grunted.

"That pitiful thing is nothing like being a Super Saiyan. Nevertheless, I must agree."

"I wonder why," Bulma mused.

* * *

Aria tried to unravel her whizzing thoughts as she flew. Vegeta had mentioned a woman, supposedly her mother. Selera. It did seem rather filial. She glanced at her ring. He had mentioned to it just prior to mentioning that name, saying that it was a crest of that Saiyan family. Aria looked down at her body. It seemed human enough. All of the body parts were in the right places. She was certainly lankier, more lithe than the average human. Then there was her immense power to consider.

She soon saw her hotel in the city, eyes wide with horror as she witnessed the scene on the entrance patio.

Cameras were everywhere.

In her panic, she dove into an alley a few blocks from her hotel. She searched for some cover, but found nothing. She ran up the street towards the rear of the building, trying to take shelter behind the trash bins. Her hotel again came into view. A cacophony of questions and flashes would assault her the moment she set foot on that property. Another mistake she should have foreseen.

But she had to get that chip.

She slid through the crowds, snatching a Mr. Satan hat off of a merchant's cart. She made her way to the back of the hotel, peering uneasily at the open green standing between her and the door. She breathed a deep sigh, and decided to make a run for it. As she sped cross the green, one of the reporters caught her approaching.

"Look! It's her!"

She froze with terror.

Aria was not one to be afraid. In fact, she'd frequently be the one staring down the fiercest of adversaries. But this was an unplanned repercussion of her reveal. She knew eventually that the press would be on this, due to the wowing factor of the glowing aura and superhuman strength, but she never expected them to find her so quickly.

It was at this point when Aria began to think very fast. With a swift movement, she bolted for the door, the hoard of journalists swarming behind her. She broke it down, not wasting the time to open it. Her room was on the top floor. Within moments, she had flown up the stairs and kicked the door in. She threw her clothes haphazardly into her duffle bag, searching about for the chip. Footsteps echoed in the stairwell, along with a chorus of voices shouting her name.

Aria pinched her eyebrows together, desperately trying to remember.

She rushed to the table beside her bed, wrenching the drawer open. And there it was.

A split second later, she heard the voices in the hallway.

The window was like feathers as she burst through it. She clutched the chip at her chest and the duffle at her side.

* * *

The ride to Capsule Corp was awkward to say the least. Piccolo and the others eyed Aria suspiciously. On the way, Vegeta recounted the major historical points of the Saiyans, and Goku told his story of how he ended up as the savior of earth, multiple times in a row. Aria listened intently, bewildered at what she was hearing. The Saiyans were once an esteemed warrior race, reeking havoc across the galaxy. They were the force of the Planet Trade, harvesting worlds for profit and destroying those who opposed them. He went on to tell of how an interplanetary emperor named Frieza annihilated their planet after his father tried to revolt, and how Goku ended up defeating Frieza many years later.

He used that as a segway to explicate the transformation into Super Saiyan. He explained that Super Saiyan is a state of being, rather than a fighting technique that is only first attainable by a need. With training, one can learn to control the Super Saiyan ability and beckon it by will, just as she did.

Aria began her story when Vegeta finished. It started when she was a young child, mysteriously ending up in the countryside near South City. Artemis and Lilina White, her adoptive parents, took her in when they found her late in the evening near their ranch. They were scientists, working with Capsule on a number of occasions. The Whites even were in possession of one of Dr. Briefs' interstellar ships, using it for planetary research. She told of her experiences off planet with her parents. When she was small, they frequently brought her along on their missions, not trusting anyone to watch her, given her inhuman abilities.

Her story of when she first experienced the transformation to Super Saiyan was strikingly similar to Vegeta's. On Alpha Six, a meteor storm was hurdling toward her adoptive parents' ship. She beat back the meteors with all of her might, but there were too many of them. As soon as she had given up, something snapped inside of her. With all of her fury, passion, and the need for survival, she transformed and destroyed the impending storm.

Her parents were, of course, grateful for her saving their lives and their ship, but were insistent on keeping her powers a secret.

Furious with their suppression, she revolted. One calm night, she packed up a massive store of food and supplies, stole the ship and rocketed to the recesses of space, where she could train unheeded. After a two-month journey, she landed on Groen, and trained for as long as she dared.

"I returned to earth three weeks ago," she said, "I've been gone for almost two years."

"So that's why we never sensed your power level! You've been off planet!" said Trunks.

"Yes."

"It all makes sense now," Vegeta mused.

The jet was well into West City now, and was making its descent to Capsule Corp.

"The Whites told me outright that they weren't my biological parents. But I still have a feeling that they had no knowledge of my heritage."

"But how did you get here, I wonder?" Bulma said from the cockpit.

"I'm betting a ship of some sort. It's probably at some top-secret government facility, knowing my par—caretakers."

"That's irrelevant," said Vegeta, "It will likely be Saiyan, and prove what we already know."

"Not so fast, Vegeta," said Bulma, "Since your planet got destroyed, there shouldn't be any Saiyan ships left. Its more than likely that it will be of a different origin."

"What good will that do us then?"

"It'll help unravel this mystery for starters. Don't you want to know where that Selera woman went after she got off the planet?"

Vegeta lowered his eyes.

"That is of no concern to me."

"But what if she's still alive, Vegeta? You said that Saiyan parents often never saw their offspring. That ship could give us another clue!"

He grew irritated.

"Woman, I just told you that I don't care!" he shouted.

Their aircraft was touching down now, lightly thumping onto the grass behind the hangar. The hum of the engines petered out as Bulma switched off the controls.

"Well I'm sure Aria does," she said as she stepped out of the cockpit and onto the green.

Aria peered at Vegeta dubiously, half nodding at Bulma's mention.

They exited the ship and promptly went into the main building, talking quietly to one another about the curious exchange. Bunny Briefs was busy preparing dinner. She happily greeted the gang, making the commonplace small talk.

Aria looked around as she entered. The building itself was enormous; easily five times the size of the Whites' cottage in the country. Their décor was laid out beautifully, with very fine pieces of art and sculpture. Yet, it felt strangely cozy, almost modest.

About a half hour into their stay, they sat down to a rather uneventful dinner. The basic conversations were exchanged. Some talks were about the tournament, but it was altogether boring. Later, Bulma approached Aria as she was finishing up with the dishes.

"Hey, you've got that chip still, right?"

Aria fumbled in her pocket, handing the chip to Bulma.

Bulma examined it. Her brow wrinkled as she concentrated on the unfamiliar shapes on the shell. She knew that the symbols on the casing weren't Saiyan or Namekian, as she'd encountered both of the languages before. It was an entirely different script, angular and exact. From what she could tell from the spacing and orientation, it was a label of some sort. On the bottom side, there was a small, circular opening with tiny metal teeth protrusions. This was probably the plug into whatever device it worked with. She also saw a miniscule slit on the side, no more than a half millimeter wide.

"Hmm…" she pondered, "It looks like this thing is a memory storage device. I have no idea why you'd have this though. There's no easy way to access the memory on an alien device, especially when you don't know the language. Whoever gave this to you must have not been thinking ahead."

Aria looked perplexedly at the little chip, and then to Bulma.

Bulma had the same look on her face as the day she saw the Namekian Cruiser. Determination gleamed in her eyes as she scrutinized the alien machinery as it begged her to challenge it. She flashed a dogged smile.

"I can crack this, but it could take me a few days, so I suggest you stay with us for the time being."

Aria was taken aback.

"That's really not necessary. I can find a room…"

"Yes it is," Bulma replied, "You can be here if I need to ask you questions. Plus, Vegeta and Trunks need new sparring partners, and I need more help around the house. It's a win-win for all of us."

"I suppose…"

"Then it's settled. There's a spare room next to Trunks' upstairs. Feel free to unpack, you've got another hard day at the tournament tomorrow."

Aria was short on funds from her stay at the hotel in the city. She bowed in thanks, and began to head up toward the room.

"Oh, I almost forgot! There's gauze, ice and bandages in the bathroom down the hall from the room for your back."

She departed with a half-hearted nod.

Aria walked down the hall, stopping to glance through the doorway of Trunks' room. The walls were painted a soft yellow and were largely bare, save a few typical posters. He was lying absentmindedly on the bed, gazing up at his ceiling. The tenacious golden boy she remembered was no longer there. In his place sat a handsome young man, mellow and thoughtful. His muscles were sharp from training, but his eyes were soft, almost timid. The relaxed personality strangely appealed to Aria, despite her normal fondness of vigor. He ran a hand through his lavender tresses, and let out a sigh.

She thought better than to announce her presence, and kept walking until she reached her door.

Her room was almost identical in size to Trunks', yet slightly more effeminate. She threw her duffle onto the goose-down bedspread, and unpacked her things, throwing her clothes into the maple drawers across from the bedposts. The room was beautifully yet simply furnished, overlooking the sprawling gardens below. While uneasy at first for invading the space, Aria felt oddly comfortable in the room. She lay down on the bed, running her fingers across the mauve comforter. The lids of her eyes began to droop as exhaustion set in.

She drifted to sleep, sighing in sweet relief.


	5. Chapter 5: The Duel

It was slightly cloudy with a cool breeze whipping through the freshly cut grass. Tendrils of leftover morning fog still wavered in the distance, shrinking away at the light of the sun. It was near ten o'clock in the morning, and the Z fighters were finishing up their hearty breakfast. True to tradition, the tournament ended in a Mr. Satan win. Due to mass hysteria after the drastic transformations of Aria and Trunks, the tournament was voided, with Mr. Satan winning by default. He greeted the crowds the next morning with his typical arrogance on the TV.

"Yeahaha!" his over-anxious, rugged voice sounded through the speakers, "Those little light shows never scared me for one second—"

"Can you believe him?" said Krillin, "All this time, and no one's been able to knock him off his high horse."

Aria grimaced as she sipped her coffee. She had been looking forward to doing just that.

"The stage was obviously rigged the whole time. It was all a big trick. It's downright merciful to cancel the competition, 'cause everyone knows I'd just beat 'em all anyway–"

Vegeta gulped the last of the milk from his third bowl of cereal, and wiped his lip.

"Bah. That pathetic tournament was child's play anyway. I hardly know why I even bother partaking in it."

Trunks rolled his eyes.

Goku and Goten were busy finishing up the hotcakes on the table, stuffing them by the half dozen down their gullets. Piccolo was leaning against a wall with his arms folded, scowling at the TV while Krillin, Trunks and Aria watched with disdain from the couch.

Gohan and Videl were outside, playing with Pan and Bra. They happily squealed "again!" as Gohan threw rocks for them to break in half. Videl watched with a benevolent smile. Bulma emerged from her quarters looking worse for wear. She clutched some soldering tools in her left hand, and white-knuckled a mug of coffee in her right. Bags were under her slightly bloodshot eyes, and her short hair was strewn every which way. Her voice cracked and scratched as she spoke.

"G'morning."

Trunks turned and saw the mess that faintly resembled his mother.

"Mom!"

She yawned and stretched out her arms.

"I was up late trying to figure this thing out," she said as she held up the chip, "I'm so close…"

Aria jumped up.

"There's no rush!"

Suddenly, Krillin spoke.

"I've got an idea! What if we have our own tournament?"

That got everyone's attention.

"I don't know why any of us haven't thought of it before. It's just like Vegeta said: that tournament is a bunch of baloney. Why not cut out the middle man and do it our way?"

Aria pricked up. A sense of loss had plagued her since Trunks' forfeit. Perhaps she would still be able to spar with 'The Golden Boy' yet.

"The reason we haven't thought of it, Krillin, is that Goku would obviously win. So there was never any point," said Bulma.

Vegeta scowled, obviously insulted.

"Aw, come on. Besides, we've got some new Saiyan blood over here!" Krillin gestured to Aria.

She grinned sheepishly.

"So, what do you think you guys?" he said, glancing between the hesitant faces.

An odd silence gripped the room. Goku and Goten stopped eating at the sudden quiet, looking around perplexedly. Piccolo and Vegeta were unmoved, ambivalent to the decision.

Trunks lit up. A rematch with Aria was just what he needed.

"Let's do it," he said.

* * *

The fighters ventured to the high desert, far outside of West City. They departed that morning, eager to test their strength after the lax, peacetime training regimens. Krillin spent the better part of the flight excitedly drawing out a round robin bracket. Goku, Gohan, and Goten flew outside, engaging in a friendly series of chases, loops and twists around the plane. Trunks was in the cockpit, as Bulma opted to continue her work on the chip. As usual, Piccolo and Vegeta mirrored each other's stern expressions, saying nothing the entire trip. Within the hour, they landed on a large plateau surrounded by high, rocky cliffs on every side. A warm gale from the engines swept the dust off the rocks, kicking it up into billowing clouds. Aria stepped outside the jet into the open, breathing in a deep sigh of fresh mountain air.

The rest began warming up almost immediately. Krillin hung back, watching wistfully as they stretched.

"Are you not fighting, Krillin?" said Goku while doing a lunge.

Krillin grimaced.

"I'm no contest to any of you guys. I'll be reffing."

"Aw, that's too bad."

"Hey, no sweat. I'm used to it. Hey guys! We're starting."

The warriors righted themselves, getting into a line in front of Krillin.

Krillin cleared his throat.

"Welcome to the, er, tournament. The matches will be in a round robin format, and the ones with the most wins advance to the next round. The ring is this plateau, so Trunks, you'll want to cap up the jet."

Trunks nodded, and tossed a DynoCap at the plane. With a clack, and a large puff of smoke, the jet disappeared into the tiny casing.

"Whoever flies more than five feet below the edge of the ring is out. Since this is our first somewhat official competition, I'd like to lay down a couple ground rules to make it fair. Number one, no becoming a Super Saiyan, and number two, no energy blasts. We're going old school hand-to-hand on this one."

He straightened out the paper in his hands.

"I've got the first few matches lined up. Piccolo, you're with Gohan. I've always wanted to see that master/apprentice matchup."

Gohan and Piccolo exchanged grins.

"Aria, you'll be matched with Trunks, since you didn't get a chance to finish your last fight."

She nodded and beamed at her opponent. He smiled back, causing her to blush inadvertently.

"Vegeta, you're fighting Goten."

"WHAT?"

Vegeta was outraged. Krillin pinched his eyebrows together. He knew that this would happen.

"We all know you want to fight Goku, but you're just going to have to hold on for one more round. Come on, we need some dramatic tension."

"I thought the whole point of this was to avoid this pathetic show!"

"Calm down, will ya?" Goku interjected.

"Don't you dare, Kakarot!"

Vegeta made a low, guttural sound and stalked off towards the other end of the plateau. The age-old rivalry between him and Goku had cooled significantly, but a small flicker of shame still burned in his heart. While Gohan earned his respect after he defeated Cell, Goku's younger son had yet to prove himself. Vegeta cursed his misfortune.

"That hothead," Krillin grumbled. "Well Goku, since that grump over there wants to fight you so bad, he'll have to get through Goten to do it. You'll fight whoever wins that match."

Goku smiled.

"I wouldn't have it any other way. Goten could use a real challenge anyhow."

Goten chuckled uneasily.

"Alrighty then!" Krillin clapped his hands together. "Let's get this thing started. Gohan and Piccolo, you're up."

Aria was fixated intently on the two warriors as they exchanged blows. Gohan had studied hard under his master, stopping Piccolo's punches with well-placed blocks, and returning them in kind. He clearly surpassed Piccolo in strength, but Piccolo was holding his own for a time. While Gohan knew how to land a hefty punch, Piccolo dodged and blocked with perceptibly more precision. Being Namekian, he meditated often for hours at a time, heightening his senses and increasing his inner focus. Only years of intense training could provide the calculated mental advantage he had over Gohan. It still wasn't enough.

Just then, Piccolo swung a right hook to Gohan's left cheek, sending him flying. Gohan sprung into a double back jump, landing firmly with his knees bent. He catapulted forward, and kneed Piccolo hard in the stomach. Piccolo grunted in pain and stumbled backward, teetering dangerously close to the edge. Gohan saw his opening. With a flourish, he knocked Piccolo's legs out from underneath, and delivered one last two handed hit. Piccolo crashed through the rock, and the crowd of warriors cheered as Gohan defeated his old master.

Aria's arms were gently folded across her chest, and she wore a pensive stare. Gohan peered over the edge of the rock face. Piccolo was panting in midair about ten feet below, but still largely unscathed. He hovered up to the makeshift ring, touching down in front of his pupil with a sly grin and an outstretched hand. Gohan grasped it firmly and confidently.

"Good job, kid."

When the sparkle lit up Gohan's face, Aria couldn't help but smile fondly.

"Alright, alright!" Krillin did his best to imitate a sportscaster persona, "Next up, we've got Aria versus Trunks. This is unfinished business right here, folks."

Aria shot him a glare, silencing him instantly. She stepped forward from the shadow of the cliff side, letting the early afternoon sun bask her in a warm glow.

Trunks stepped into the sun from his corner of the ring. Her eyes locked on his.

In that moment, time stood still.

The sunlight radiated off of his tanned Saiyan skin. It crept into the elegant lines of his muscles, giving them stunning definition. A glimmer shone in his alluring periwinkle eyes, the light dancing in his irises. His navy t-shirt stretched across his defined chest, almost prompting Aria to blush. With a shake of her head, she was back in focus.

Trunks was surprised.

She had a stern look on her face, but there was softness behind the blue veil in her eyes. Her white tank top silhouetted her slender frame, bearing the Capsule logo. She had on black shorts that hugged her muscular thighs and fighting gloves, yet she somehow still appeared feminine.

He snapped back into focus, and dropped into a fighting stance.

"Now it's my turn to ask. Are you ready?"

Aria broke into a wide grin, and got into position.

"When you are."

They shot forward into the center of the plateau, and began their dance.

Their lithe strikes swept gracefully through the air, missing by millimeters each time. With Aria, each strike was a perfectly fluid motion. Trunks saw a completely different fighter in front of him. Her movements were no longer emotionally charged, and her agility now matched his almost exactly. Aria was impressed with skills as well, now that she was able to experience them free of mental hindrance. Trunks had always trained under his father, and it showed, but his style was drastically different than Vegeta's. Trunks concentrated on blocking and dodging, stepping past Aria's quick punches relatively easily. His strikes weren't as powerful as Vegeta's, but he made up for it in stamina.

Aria strived for nothing less than perfection in her abilities. Her precision was remarkable. In her late teens, she studied human anatomy under Artemis, finding every weak point on the body. Since Saiyans were built with the same musculature, it was easier for her to use those weak points as an advantage. But her lack of a sparring opponent during her years of training was once again a major obstacle. She was able to land a couple blows to his torso, but she couldn't pin him down. As the fight progressed, Trunks landed more and more hits. Aria grew frustrated. It was time for a new strategy.

She leapt backward and landed just short of the ring's boundary. She was breathing heavily, trying to work out a way of beating him. A switch flipped on in her brain as she noticed the rush of wind at her back. It was risky, but it would have to do.

"Getting tired yet?" she panted.

Trunks was also short of breath.

"Not a chance," he puffed.

The other fighters cheered on from the sides.

Head on combat was usually her style, but she'd never dealt with someone at this magnitude of strength. If the battle kept on the way it was, she would certainly lose to Trunks' superior fighting skills. She smirked and tensed her muscles.

"Right. I'm ready."

Trunks chuckled.

"As you wish."

Vegeta had been steadily watching the battle throughout. He rolled his eyes.

"Moron," he muttered.

A devious grin played across Aria's lips as Trunks hurdled towards her.

She inched slightly closer to the border, masking it as changing her stance.

Trunks crashed into her head on, knocking them both clear off the edge. She grunted from the impact. Her arms interlocked around his upper arms and torso, and her legs clasped his together. Trunks arms were fastened to his sides, ready for Aria to go into a barrel roll. He cursed himself inwardly as she squeezed. How could he be so careless?

Aria rocketed them both into the sky, getting a good three hundred to three hundred and fifty feet above the ring. He struggled furiously, to no avail. Aria had locked his limbs into place.

"Whoa, look at Aria!" Krillin exclaimed.

Vegeta grunted.

"He fell right into it. Idiot."

What Aria hadn't taken into account was how much bigger Trunks was than her. She was desperately clasping her arms and legs together, barely able to keep him subdued.

Now it was his turn to think fast. He couldn't turn into a Super Saiyan, which would easily release him, but enough of a ki increase might loosen her grasp enough to break free.

Aria swooped them into a dive, descending rapidly towards the ring.

Trunks let out a roar. His energy field lit up, pushing hard against Aria's grip. Her nails dug into her forearms, breaking the skin as her arms began to tear apart. Aria began to yell and increased her ki, powering it into her failing muscles. Their screams were in sync as they dove, with the wind howling past their ears. They were so close to the ring now, and Aria couldn't take any more. She began to loosen her grip to get ready for the final blow.

Trunks had found his opportunity.

He broke free, and whirled around in midair, hitting Aria hard in the gut. Disoriented, she spun and kicked up, missing Trunks by a good foot. With that, he snatched her leg with both hands and tomahawked her down. She shot towards the ground. By the time she stopped herself—it was too late.

She looked upwards to find herself almost fifteen feet below the edge of the plateau.

Aria flew back up to the ring, in a state of shock.

When she touched down, she saw Trunks smiling at her. He held out a hand.

"Good fight, you almost had me."

At first, she didn't know how to react. She was angry at her loss, but still glad that she could fight the boy who showed her the miraculous power of the Super Saiyan.

Strangely, Aria began to laugh. It wasn't maliciously, but gleefully. Aria had finally found warriors who were stronger than she was.

They were people she could actually learn from.

She shook his hand with the biggest smile she'd ever worn on her face.

Suddenly, Trunks' pocket communicator began to buzz violently. He took it out to see a frantic-looking Bulma.

"Guys, you need to come back right away. There's something you need to see."


	6. Chapter 6: Glimpse of Darkness

"Bulma! What is it?" asked Aria.

Vegeta let out an angry roar.

"What is the meaning of this, woman?"

Bulma scowled.

"If you must know, it's about Aria's chip," her voice crackled through the small speaker.

"It can wait! We are not finished here!" he growled.

"This concerns you too Vegeta."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that what's on this chip concerns you as well. It concerns all of you."

"We're on our way," said Trunks.

* * *

The flight back to Capsule Corp was quiet, teeming with anxiousness. The gang opted to fly without the jet for speed. Krillin and Goku murmured to one another while Piccolo stared into space, deep in thought. Goten was busy whispering to Trunks at the front of the pack, and Aria flew alone. It didn't make any sense. What could that little device possibly have on there that would involve Vegeta personally? The machine wasn't even Saiyan in origin.

In the back of the pack, Vegeta fumed with frustration and confusion. Yet again, he was impeded from challenging Kakarot. It was that confounded woman's fault. What idiocy regarding this chip could he possibly be involved in?

They touched down on the Capsule Corp greens within a few minutes, rapidly racing towards the house.

What they found was unnerving.

Bulma had rewired the home television set completely. Bits of plastic littered the carpet, and cables were strewn haphazardly about. A small, unique looking cable was running from the TV to the chip. Bulma appeared from the kitchen, wolfing down what was likely her first meal since dinner the previous night.

"Good, you're here. You had better sit down."

They sat.

She breathed in deeply.

"This is not something easy to see. Still, you have to watch it to understand what a grave situation we're in right now."

She looked at Aria.

"This feed mostly applies to you, so I need to know; are you ready for it?"

Aria gulped. Her stomach was already feeling uneasy.

"Yes, I'm ready."

"Alright."

Bulma switched the television on.

Two figures appeared in the center of the screen. They were likely in an underground bunker, given the thick metal walls surrounding them. Behind them sat an open pod. They both had stern expressions on their faces, and thick tails protruding from their backs. One was a well-built man, with thick, long hair tied back in a ponytail and eyes of coal. The other was a lean, beautiful, slender woman with piercing blue eyes and spiky hair, styled into a bob. Vegeta knew it the instant he saw her.

"Hello Katal," said Selera.

"You probably don't know yourself by that name, but trust us when we say, this is who you are. Katal, you are the last known daughter of the Saiyan race. I am your mother, Selera, and this is your father, Jeiden. If you somehow managed to find and see this, we have already perished."

Jeiden began to speak.

"When your mother and I arrived here, I was gifted with divination and telepathy from the peaceful race residing on this planet, as you were when you were born. When you were a mere blip in existence, gestating in your mother's womb, I had a vision that one day a daughter of our race would become something incredibly revered and powerful, the legendary Super Saiyan. That daughter is you. While it is an incredible gift, it comes with a price. When you completed your first year of life, another vision plagued my thoughts. It was of you and yet another Super Saiyan, fighting alongside one another as master and apprentice. This Saiyan was the crowned prince of our race, Prince Vegeta."

The room collectively gasped and stared at Vegeta. Vegeta could only look on in awed silence.

"You were fighting for your lives against a grave and terrible threat, a malevolent being by the name of Marcus. He will attack the planet you happen to reside on. His heart is as black as the holes that swallow up galaxies, just as he has with his disastrous power. This cataclysm will occur somewhere near your twentieth year of life, although I can only estimate the time. You and Prince Vegeta are the only hopes this universe has against him."

The room was astonished. Selera spoke again.

"It is imperative that you defeat him. The fate of the universe lies with you. I have every confidence in you both."

Her gaze seemed to fall on Vegeta. The piercing eyes stared directly at him, boring deep into his.

He had to look away.

Suddenly, a large crash could be heard in the background.

"There isn't much time," said Selera. "This recording will be with you in your escape pod. Marcus has arrived on Tetsau. Goodbye, my daughter."

The screen faded into static.

Unfamiliar tears began to roll down Aria's cheeks. All this time she had never known. Yesterday she was a human girl with a gift. Today, she was the last daughter of an extinct, alien race.

A solemn silence gripped the room. For a long time, no one dared to move or speak, until finally, Trunks walked over to Aria and put a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry."

Aria wiped her eyes.

"It's not over," said Bulma.

The group turned to stare at her.

"What do you mean?" asked Piccolo.

Bulma clenched her fists.

"You'll see."

A scratching began to come from the television as the static distorted itself on the screen. In place of the two Saiyans, a tall, malicious looking blue creature appeared. It was lanky and muscular, and looked almost human. A golden stripe ran across its chest and down its abdomen. Its tail flipped back and forth behind it, the viciously sharp point glinting in the dim light. The creature's eyes were specks of gold in a black sea, with nothing but malice behind them. A short crest cut across his forehead, splitting it in two. It seemed to clear its throat as it scowled at the escape pod.

Aria saw a glimpse of a small girl with bushy raven hair, resting in the formerly empty pocket of the pod. It had to be her. She rushed towards the screen.

"Look at that, the last remaining Saiyan girl, sleeping soundly in the wake of pure greatness. How quaint."

The group stared angrily at the screen.

"My apologies, I have forgotten my manners," said the creature, "I am Marcus. Your parents mentioned me, I believe, and I already know of you."

His gruff accent distorted the speakers. He broke into a smile, exposing his fangs.

"You look so pitiful in that little pod. I couldn't possibly bring myself to kill my destined opponent in that kind of state."

Aria gasped. Marcus cracked a wicked smirk.

"I know quite a lot about you, Katal. Your parents' minds were filled with interesting information. Unfortunately, they couldn't make it to our little chat."

Aria's stomach lurched. Vegeta's jaw tightened.

"On this most auspicious day, I happen to be in the mood for a game," Marcus continued. "I suppose I could kill you, but what would be the fun in that?"

His devilish eyes flashed.

"We're going to have a scavenger hunt; a galactic one, to be precise. I am going to leave you be," he gestured to the pod, "and allow this pod to launch into deep space. I will not track it, because I would like to find you the old fashioned way. I'm assuming that if you're seeing my lovely face that you've figured out this thing, and I haven't completed my scavenger hunt just yet. But rest assured…"

He leaned into the camera, a gleam of sheer rancor in his eyes.

"I will find you."

Marcus twisted towards the pod, and the screen cut to black once more.

* * *

Aria fell to her knees.

"Damn him," she growled, digging her nails into the carpet.

No one else knew what to make of this. None of them had this much of a shock since Majin Buu. With the news from Jeiden, it was likely that Marcus was just as or more powerful than Buu. According to Jeiden's prediction, Marcus could arrive on earth at any time in the next few years. They would have hardly any time to prepare.

Vegeta felt a pang in his gut. He slammed his fists on a nearby table, splintering it on contact.

"Vegeta!" Bulma shouted.

He stepped to the door to the outside, and promptly broke it down.

"What the hell are you doing?" she exclaimed.

Vegeta said nothing, and immediately began to head to his gravity chamber.

"Stop! Answer me!" she barked, sprinting out of the door.

Vegeta did not stop.

Krillin and Goku ran out after them.

"Vegeta! For God's sake!" Krillin yelled.

Vegeta entered the chamber and slammed the door behind him. The low hum of the Gravitron kicked in immediately.

"That brute…" said Krillin.

"I dunno Krillin, I think he's onto something in his own way," Goku scratched his chin. "If that Marcus shows up soon, we're going to need to train as much as we can until he gets here. Besides, at least he's venting his anger in a positive way. That's all we can ask for."

Krillin muttered something unintelligible.

They went back into the house to find the rest of the group in a state of dishevelment.

Aria remained in a heap in front of the television, still hunched over. She was breathing rapidly, her body convulsing with the movement of her lungs. Trunks stood over her in a protective stance as he tried in vain to calm her down. Piccolo had a hand on his chin as he stared into space, and Goten and Gohan watched Aria blankly from behind the couch.

Suddenly, they all sensed something very wrong.

Aria's ki level was spiking.

"Aria?" asked Trunks, with a tremor in his voice.

Aria was lost in a sea of anger and turmoil. She was losing control, and fast. Her emotions spread like a virus through her conscious mind, licking at her inner power with branches of utter hatred.

The ground began to vibrate in shockwaves originating from where Aria knelt. She grew rigid as all of her muscles tensed and contracted.

Piccolo realized what was happening. He rushed to Aria's side.

"WE HAVE TO GET HER OUTSIDE!" Piccolo shouted.

He lifted her stiff body into his arms, and sprinted out of the broken doorway.

Aria's convulsions grew increasingly worse as her energy skyrocketed. Her hair began to flash gold as she drifted between the normal and Super Saiyan states. Piccolo sped across the grass, desperately trying to maximize the distance between her and Capsule Corp.

Then, in a fleeting moment of lucidity, Aria's spasms stopped, and her eyes shot wide open.

"Put me down," Aria spoke with unreal clarity.

Whether it was the disturbing rationality of her words, or the fact that he felt her energy increase threefold within milliseconds, Piccolo did exactly what he was told.

He flew as fast as the wind could carry him in the opposite direction, hearing only her screams of anguish, and feeling the heated blaze of raw power behind him.

Aria's energy did not falter for fifteen solid minutes. She wept, and wept grievously.

Though she had never truly known her parents, the loss of the innocent lives Marcus had destroyed tore at her heart. Aria had always been very empathetic, with a strong sense of justice. The fact that the remains of her kin were killed for pointless narcissism made her boil with rage. Back at Capsule Corp, the Z fighters watched Aria grimly, their clothes plastered to their fronts from the wind she created with her power.

Krillin fought hard against the gale.

"What are we gonna do you guys?" he shouted into the wind.

"Nothing," said Piccolo, just loud enough for Krillin to hear. "She's not dangerous to us."

"Have you lost your mind?" Krillin exclaimed, "If we let this keep going she could destroy Capsule Corp!"

"She won't do that."

"But what if she can't stop it?"

Piccolo paused, mulling it over.

"She can."

With that, Aria slowly began to power down. The landscape grew blurry as her energy nosedived. The rage diminished into a state of exhaustion.

Then it all went black.


	7. Chapter 7: Humbling

A peaceful, white aura surrounded Aria. Her mind was suspended and open in front of her unmoving body, her visions strewn across the rippling pool in front of her. She felt the vibrations of each inaudible chord flitter atop her skin, lightly immersing her in each thought.

_When the mind is fully open, the body becomes needless. It is at this point when you are the most powerful, and the most vulnerable._

Comatose meditation was a common ritual for her, except she had never reached it through an involuntary loss of consciousness. While her body remained still and useless, her mind ascended past a human consciousness, feeling nothing and everything all at once. Through this state, she learned to face her emotions as visible forms, was able commune with them, understand them, and expel them. In her meditation, she rematerialized in a cloudlike chasm, surrounded by soft white. Naturally, the chorus of thoughts drifted to the demon, Marcus, and the loss of her parents. The vibrations grew stronger, sending tremors throughout her body. Soon, the once white aura had been stricken with splatters of emotion, slowly seeping into the fibrous clouds, turning them blood red.

This was one of the most painful physiological cycles Aria had ever experienced. No other had ever sunken this deep into the layers of her mind, previously untouched. Pain. Anguish. Revenge. Remorse. Anger. Malice. Hatred. Love. Heartache. Longing.

The shock alone awoke her.

While the lids of her eyes remained shut, she could hear the muffled voices of what she thought to be the Z fighters. After a few moments, the voices became audible.

"I think she's waking up," said a soft voice.

Her eyes fluttered open. It was Trunks.

An odd sense of relief went through Aria when she saw him. His warm smile was soothing to her.

"What happened?" she whispered, her head still reeling from the mental barrage.

"You went ballistic, and have been out for over a day. Are you alright?"

Aria steadied herself to a seated position, her head spinning like a carousel. Everyone was standing in a circle around her bed.

"Never been better." She rubbed her temples.

"Do you remember anything?"

She rubbed her head.

"I remember the rage, and increasing my power level. It's all a blur."

"Do you remember being carried outside?"

Aria thought a moment.

"Faintly."

"That was Piccolo. Good timing too; you could have blown apart Capsule Corp had he not gotten you out of there."

Aria's heart sank when she looked at Piccolo and the others. His, and every one of their lives were endangered over something she couldn't have done anything to prevent. She lowered her head.

"Hey, don't sweat it. You had every right to be angry," said Trunks, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"We'll pulverize that Marcus bastard if and when he shows up," said Goten, slapping a fist into his palm. She cracked a small smirk at the thought.

Piccolo cleared his throat.

"Not to interrupt the little pep talk, but now that she's awake, she needs to talk with Vegeta."

Aria blinked twice in surprise.

"Vegeta? Why?"

"To convince him to train you."

"I can handle myself just fine," she retorted.

"After that last little uncontrolled outburst, I highly doubt that. Besides, you did lose to Trunks, and he won't be half as hard as Marcus."

Aria's and Trunks' eyes narrowed simultaneously.

"My father trains solo, Piccolo," Trunks said coldly. "You know how he gets when someone interferes."

Piccolo shot him a look.

"But if this Marcus were to get here tomorrow, we wouldn't have a moment to lose, now would we? Vegeta is just going to need to swallow his pride," he snapped.

After letting her get back on her feet, Trunks led Aria outside to the Capsule ship on the lawn. She peered into the window of the ship. Vegeta has been busy training at 600 times gravity since the previous day, barely able to do his pushups under the massive strain.

What Aria knew of Vegeta was that he was exceptionally stubborn and hardheaded. Convincing him to do anything was going to be an insurmountable task. In truth, she was slightly intimidated by him. She knew her father's vision, and the importance of the task that beset her, but she was still unsure about the implications of working with such an unstable character.

She glanced back to Trunks.

"Are you sure we can't wait?"

Trunks shook his head.

"Father can train for days at a time. As much as I don't want to interfere, Piccolo's got a point."

Aria gulped.

"Great."

She sighed, and knocked on the door.

No response.

Another knock, this time, slightly harder.

Still no response.

"Vegeta?" she said tentatively.

A roar erupted from the chamber.

"DO NOT DISTURB ME!"

"What do I do now?" she whispered to Trunks.

Trunks bounced away and retreated to the back door into Capsule, waving her on with a facetious smile.

"You coward!" she hissed.

She groaned, and surveyed the door up and down before knocking again.

"Vegeta, please, I need to talk to you."

"LEAVE ME ALONE."

Aria didn't budge.

"I need to talk to you! Now!"

She heard a fierce growl as Vegeta sluggishly made his way to the control pad, pressing a few buttons to turn the gravity down to normal. Aria had a sinking feeling in her stomach as she heard his heavy footsteps approach the door. The door opened.

"What in the blazes do you want?" he snarled.

Aria was shocked at the sight of him. Deep bruises littered his frame. Sweat stained with blood dripped from his skin. Cuts were all over his body, some still bleeding profusely as his heart pounded.

"You're hurt!" she exclaimed.

"Is this what you disturbed me for, girl?" he panted. "This is nothing, now leave me be!"

He turned to close the door. Aria snapped back into focus.

"No, I came to ask you something."

He stopped and turned to face her. A lump caught in her throat as his gaze pierced through her.

"This had better be good."

For a moment, she thought about turning to leave that very second. Her determination, and better judgment, prevented her from doing so.

"I was just wondering if you would…perhaps…"

She paused, wringing her hands.

"Out with it then!" Vegeta snapped.

"Train me?" she almost squeaked.

Vegeta cackled.

"Oh how precious," he taunted, "Where has that tenacious little egotist gone? Been put in your place by son, have you?"

Aria's cheeks burnt hot with embarrassment.

"While you may be Saiyan, I have no desire nor motivation to train you. It serves me no purpose. I know you came out here because of that confounded video feed. And that vision or whatever your dear old daddy saw was likely me stepping in to finish the job."

Her embarrassment now turned to anger.

"What? Are you too proud to accept a student? Or scared that one day I'll surpass you, just like your son has?" she retorted.

She wished dearly that she could take back her statement when she saw the gleam of sheer rage in Vegeta's eyes. Out of natural impulse, she backed away slightly. Vegeta advanced, with a new and vengeful energy in his step. Oddly, whether from pride or resignation, Aria did not run. She drew herself up to her full height, just four inches taller than Vegeta. She stared him down, goading him to attack. Both of them neither blinked nor spoke for a time, saying nothing and everything all at once. Trunks could only watch awestruck from the doorway. Had it been him confronting his father like that, he would have been careened across the solar system. But Vegeta just stood there, glaring at Aria.

Vegeta was normally one to balk at such a request. Yet, he pondered for a moment. She clearly did not show fear, and had some degree of respect for him since she desired his tutelage. While he didn't want to take on another trainee, he entertained the idea in his mind. If nothing else, he could put her in her place, and she was a Saiyan.

She was Selera's child, after all.

Finally, he spoke.

"I answer to no one," Vegeta said icily. "You least of all. If anything, you should be kneeling before me, your crowned prince, as a member of the Saiyan race. But out of the goodness of my heart, I'll give you one chance to prove yourself. If by some miracle you can somehow manage to land a single blow on me, I will train you."

Aria lit up. But her joy soon faded when she took another look at Vegeta's injuries. He was in no shape to fight.

"But, your wounds…"

"As if that would hinder me."

Aria was silent.

He retreated back into the chamber, stationing himself near the control panel.

"Well?" he snapped.

Aria crept inside, shutting the door behind her. She instantly regretted doing so. The Capsule ship was a steel, circular dome with a large center pillar. Everything had a reddish tinge in the dim light. As she walked towards the center, the steel walls of the chamber seemed to close in. Aria had never been fond of small rooms, especially ones that were as suffocating as this one was.

Vegeta turned the dial.

"Oh, and by the way, you will be fighting me at three hundred times earth gravity. We begin immediately."

Within seconds, the Gravitron hummed to life. The sheer weight of the gravity made her crash to the floor with a shriek. Vegeta winced only slightly when the gravity kicked on.

"Pitiful," he muttered.

Aria could barely breathe. She was completely pinned to the floor. As she struggled to hoist her torso up from the ground, Vegeta delivered a quick kick to her stomach, sending her skidding across the floor. She coughed up a bit of blood, writhing in pain on the ground.

"This is pathetic! Surrender now and spare me the inconvenience," he spat.

Aria wasn't about to give up. With all her strength, she got onto her hands and knees, and began to try to stand.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. He aimed another kick, this time under her knees.

The force of the kick flipped her backwards, knocking her back and skull hard onto the ground.

"No…fair…" she choked, clutching the back of her head.

"Spare me."

He snatched one of her legs and proceeded to throw her like a rag doll into the opposing wall.

"You couldn't possibly withstand my training. It's useless to keep this up."

Aria was near unconscious now, frantically trying to think of a way out. Vegeta walked slowly toward her, a wicked smile on his face. She labored languidly to her feet. With no other option, she accelerated herself into Super Saiyan.

Her movements instantly became more comfortable. She stood tall, holding herself steady under the pressure then dropped into a battle stance.

Vegeta grimaced, and followed suit, powering up as well.

She lunged forward with a powerful punch, but Vegeta evaded easily. Then, she pulled into a right kick, only to miss again.

"Give up," he sneered.

Aria rained blows down on him, each subsequent hit dodged as easily as the first.

"You really have no clue how to fight, do you?" he taunted.

She continued her barrage, with a little more vigor. Vegeta's brow furrowed. He was actually beginning to exert himself.

He eventually grew bored, and threw a left-handed punch toward her head. To his surprise, she dodged. Aria saw an opening and shot her arm forward towards his stomach. She missed him by mere millimeters as he flipped through the air over to her backside.

He cursed himself inwardly.

_That was far too close._

Aria whipped her arm around in an attempt to catch him. Vegeta weaved rapidly and cocked her jaw with a right hook. Aria's was fading fast. She didn't know how long she could keep this up.

Now, Aria grew very frustrated. Without a doubt, the odds were stacked against her from the beginning. Not only had Vegeta been training under gravity for years, he was equipped with the knowledge and wisdom of a seasoned warrior. He knew every sparring strategy possible, and used them all to his advantage. Her naivety betrayed her. Thinking that a few cuts and bruises would slow Vegeta down was mistake enough, but walking right into his home arena was inexcusable. At any minute, she felt as if she could falter and never rise again. She dropped to her knees, gasping for breath.

Vegeta spat onto the tile.

"I hope this means you forfeit."

Aria scrambled to her feet, and ratcheted herself up again. She was shaking violently, her knees nearly collapsing under her. She shook her head in between gasps.

Vegeta's eyes widened.

"Why are you so unbelievably stupid?"

He couldn't be sure, but he thought he heard slight laughter in her heavy breathing.

It couldn't be said which blow had more impact. The punch itself was extraordinarily powerful, sending shockwaves throughout his body. But the confusion, the utter bewilderment, caused him to go limp under the gravity. For a moment, Aria couldn't believe what happened. She felt her fist connect, but did she actually hit him? When she raised her head to see where her punch had landed, she saw sharp and toned abdominals, with her fist lodged neatly in the middle.

When his knees hit the floor, it was as if the gravity disappeared. Her entire body felt a rush of exhilaration as her heart pounded. She stood up straight and tall, looking down at her challenger. Vegeta regained his composure, and stood to face Aria. In that moment, an implicit respect was shared between the two.

After the tacit exchange, Vegeta spoke.

"You have exactly one year of my time, not one minute more. We begin tomorrow at dawn. Now get out of my ship."

That first night at the dinner table, Aria ate cheerily, despite being exhausted and covered in bruises. Everyone was flabbergasted. Aria had never fought in that intense level of gravity, let alone been exposed to it. To land one punch on Vegeta in his home turf with no prior training was a triumph to behold. All of the Z warriors took turns praising her, and laughed heartily at the thought of Vegeta falling to his knees at her hand. All, that is, except for Trunks. He remained silent at the table, almost mirroring Vegeta in his somber attitude. She noticed Trunks' impassive nature throughout the meal, eyeing him curiously. For a split second, his eyes flashed dangerously when she peered at him. Aria's brow furrowed, and she went back to her meal. She slept soundly that evening, anxiously awaiting the adventure that lay ahead.


	8. Chapter 8: The Messenger

Chapter 8 – The Messenger

The blaring noise of the alarm clock jerked Aria awake. She slapped the clock off of the table, and winced as it shattered on the opposing wall. It was still dark outside, yet the sun glowed in pink and red hues, barely peeking over the mountains in the distance. After throwing on a white "Capsule" tank and black shorts, she made her way to the kitchen. Thin rays began to filter through the blinds, shining on the off-white walls. She poured herself a bowl of cereal and made some bacon in a pan as she ate. When it became crisp as she was devouring her third bowl, she wolfed it down voraciously, and took a large swig of milk from the gallon in the fridge. Her Saiyan appetite was in full swing after her spar with Vegeta the preceding day.

The sun was almost all the way over the horizon when she walked outside to the gravity chamber. Flashes of light poured through the circular windows of the ship, and the vibrations of the training capsule unnerved her. She could faintly make out Vegeta's grunts as he deflected his own blasts in the chamber.

Despite her caution, she made her way up the steps, and knocked on the metal shell.

The flashes did not stop, and the entire ship shook with strain. For a moment, she thought it might explode, but kept her composure. She banged on the door, hoping to catch his attention in between blasts.

"This had better be good!" Vegeta roared, continuing to partake in his exercises.

"Its dawn, and I'm here."

Vegeta glanced out of the window, noting the sun's position in the sky.

"It is not dawn. It is morning, and you are late."

He deflected the ki into one of the training machines, causing it to rupture and explode. Bits of shrapnel sliced his Saiyan skin as he shielded himself, leaving small cuts all over his arms and body. He cursed under his breath, and halted the exercise.

"Are you alright?" Aria called, her ear pressed to the door.

Vegeta rolled his eyes, and examined the shattered machine.

"What an idiotic question," Vegeta muttered. He grumbled and strutted to the door, wrenching it open with a scowl on his face. Aria clasped her hands together, trying to formulate an apology.

"Well don't just _stand there_," Vegeta growled before she could speak, "Now that you've disrupted me you'd best make it up in your training!"

Aria's mouth snapped shut. She nodded, and stepped into the GR behind Vegeta. Remembering the shock of the gravity, she bent her knees to get herself steady. Small pieces of metal littered the floor, and dirt was gathering in the corners. The ceiling seemed higher than when she first entered, but the walls still closed in on her. Vegeta was quite bloody, although he appeared to not notice.

"Don't drop into your stance like an idiot," he snapped without turning around. "You will be doing a pre-warm up stretch at 50g, hardly something to fuss over."

She hesitantly stood up straight, rubbing the back of her neck. As the gravity kicked on, she grunted under the pressure.

Vegeta turned around to begin stretching only to find Aria straining to stand.

"You can't be serious," he moaned.

Aria flashed him a look.

"Hey, come on, I'm new at this."

Vegeta rolled his eyes.

"You managed to stand well enough at 300g. Now stretch out, or you'll never be able to keep up."

Her muscles were sore from the previous day, and under this gravity, the pain was excruciating. When she went into a lunge, her hamstring gave out. She slowly hoisted herself up, and tried again, only to fall just as before. Vegeta watched this go on for at least ten minutes. As soon as Aria went to stretch, she would fall, only to scramble to her feet and try again. Her determination intrigued him. It was almost nostalgic, watching her struggle against the gravity as he once did.

"That's enough, stand up."

She obeyed, panting lightly from the exertion.

"Whatever your normal warm up is, double it."

"But—I—"

Vegeta ignored her and flipped into a handstand. Then, he lowered to do pushups; all the while keeping his back and legs perfectly straight.

Aria stared openmouthed, bewildered by his dexterity.

She quickly grew uneasy. It was already mortifying that she embarrassed herself with that pitiful stretching display, but doubling her already rigorous warm up would be near impossible at this gravity. As if that wasn't enough, she now had to keep up with Mr. Über Saiyan.

She sighed and dropped to the floor to begin her sit-ups.

The next four hours encompassed the most grueling workout Aria had ever done. Over time, Vegeta had crafted a regimen for himself fit for only the elite class of warriors. Ten thousand reps per exercise is no easy task, and Aria had to complete the same workout, albeit at only 100g.

By the end of the third exercise, pull-ups, she was nearly depleted. She could barely breathe, and the room around her flashed red. With all of her strength, she wrenched upward for the final rep. With that, her biceps gave out, sending her crashing to the floor. Vegeta scowled, and hopped down from the bar. Aria shook uncontrollably, drenched in sweat. Not one to sympathize, Vegeta nudged her writhing body with his boot. Aria slammed her open hand onto the ground, and scratched her nails into the tile floor. Desperation enveloped her as it did the previous day, and she hadn't even started fighting.

Vegeta noticed the change instantly. Before Aria could even begin her transformation, he was standing over her with a condescending glare.

"DON'T YOU _DARE_," he roared.

Aria froze.

"What?" she choked.

"You're thinking of turning Super Saiyan."

She sat up, clutching onto her knees to prevent being pressed to the floor.

"What of it?"

Vegeta slapped a palm to his forehead.

"Changing into a Super Saiyan diminishes your training, creating a shortcut."

"I thought a shortcut was a good thing!" Aria retorted, coughing violently as she did so.

"Not if you lose almost everything you would have gained in your training. But if you train at normal form, your ascended states will grow two fold."

Aria smacked her forehead against her knees.

"You are forbidden from ascending until you can master this gravity at normal level," he ordered.

She opened her mouth to protest, only to shut it again, knowing he was right.

During her time on Groen, she hit a wall. The techniques she learned grew tedious, and the moves she tried to craft only ended in failure. She went on like that for nearly six months with nothing to show for it. Almost always, she was a Super Saiyan when she worked. Aria raised herself up to a standing position, and dropped into a battle stance.

"Alright," she breathed, "I'm ready."

Vegeta snorted.

"I wish that were true."

Now that she was a student, how Aria managed to land a punch the day she confronted Vegeta escaped her. By the end of the day, she was spent. Vegeta had tried her on every possible level, and it was only the first session. She could hardly get a word in, much less insights into his battle style. He spent a large amount of time either snorting at her failed attempts to catch him, criticizing her form or bashing her against the training capsule's walls. Though, through his brutishness, Vegeta was actually a rather insightful opponent. The webs he weaved to keep her guessing never flickered for an instant. She begrudgingly accepted this as a benefit her problem solving skills, despite her outward irritation and inability to land a single punch. When the two finished their final spar, Aria fell to the floor, with the full intention never to get up. Vegeta walked to the controls and switched off the gravity. He turned to see Aria on the floor, curled up into a ball. He stretched his arms, grimacing at his disheveled pupil.

"You had better have wherewithal to get up and out of this chamber."

Aria stirred slightly, but remained unresponsive. Vegeta groaned. There was no doubt that she was exhausted. Still, he didn't want her drool on his tiled floor, and most certainly didn't want to take the time to drag her out of there.

"Get up!" he barked.

Her eyes partially opened to a blur, with the slight outline of her master standing over her. The gravity was off now, but her muscles refused to move. She held fast, almost attaching herself to the floor. Vegeta growled at her insolence.

"I will_ not_ ask you again. Get up, or you forfeit your privilege to train here."

Her eyes snapped all the way open, putting the room back into focus. Aria tried desperately to roll onto her stomach, and put her arms underneath her upper body.

She heaved herself halfway up, and dragged her unmoving legs toward the door.

"You will walk upright like a warrior while in my presence, not crawl on the ground like a pitiful creature," Vegeta snarled, grasping the back of her shirt firmly. He raised her off the floor, kicked open the door and threw her like a rag doll out of the chamber. A whoosh of cold night air passed through her hair as she hit the damp grass. The sky was overcast with clouds, hiding the crescent moon behind a thick veil. There were no stars, and the lights from the house seemed far in the distance, though only a few feet away.

After slamming the capsule door behind him, he stalked past her limp body.

"Until you can carry yourself as a Saiyan warrior, don't bother coming back," he spat.

With that, he retreated into the house, and wrenched the screen door shut.

The silence of the night was deafening. Not a creature made a sound, and the wind seemed to suddenly die at his ultimatum. The dampness in the ground began to seep into her already sweat-drenched clothes, making her shiver. The fall did her no more physical damage, at least none that she could tell over her severe injuries. But his words struck a dissonant chord within her. Her pain began to fade out of her limbs, and entangled itself around her feelings. To her shock, Aria began to cry. She had never wept due to training, not once, not even during her forlorn times of solitude off-planet. Never had anyone cut to her core like right at that moment. Never had she shriveled and paled in comparison to anyone. Never had she come to her breaking point.

She awoke the next morning to the same sound of the alarm, surrounded by a comfortable goose feather down and soft linens. It was strange, as she never remembered leaving the patch of grass she had confined herself to the previous night. A new clock had been placed beside her bed, and it read 5:30. She would have again whipped it off of the table as she had before, but her body refused. The pain of her wounds cut to her bones, and her muscles seared from the first day's workout. Every fiber of her being told her to stay in bed, to rest off the throbbing aches and shattered pride. All but one.

Something caught her wandering eye as she raised herself up: a note on her bedside table.

The four words, etched in common ballpoint pen, gave her the strength to rise out of bed, and stand straight and tall. She had no idea who wrote them, and it would remain that way for a long time afterward. Identity aside, she silently thanked her messenger.

Because of those four words, she would walk with her Saiyan predecessors as a warrior, and continue to meet every challenge Vegeta, or anyone else for that matter, would set for her.

_Saiyans never give up._


	9. Chapter 9: The Ties that Bind

Vegeta was an unbending, stubborn, proud, and even arrogant man. So it came as no surprise to Aria that her pleas to be accepted back were met with reluctance. The first attempt was met with a door to her face. The second was ignored completely. She had yet to attempt a third, as she still mulled over the outcome in her mind. While the splitting pain she felt that morning was already beginning to waver, she was still in no condition to repeat her first feat. Reason was out of the question. An egotistical man like Vegeta was not one to be swayed by logic. She refused to resort to telepathy, especially since it usually only worked on the weak-minded. She sat at the Briefs' dining table with a cup of coffee, pondering a way to win back his favor. Idea after idea was shot down in her head as she twirled the coffee in her cup. The scalding coffee suddenly spilled out onto the table. She swore and wiped it up, irked by the mental derailment.

After her coffee, she decided to take a flight outside for contemplation, just as she did when she was little. A bracing breeze whipped through her hair, and gave her bare arms and legs goose bumps. It was a crisp, cool day. The sky was lightly overcast, and the green of the forest seemed muted without the sun's rays. A grassy field came into view just before the edge of the mountain range. There was a small stream winding its way through the clearing, disappearing into the forest when it reached the lining of trees. Aria found a strange resonance with the place, though she had never seen it before. She touched down near a boulder by the brook, examining the landscape. There were a few dandelion and clover patches dotted about the field, though she could see no animals or signs of human disturbance. She stooped down, and tested the water with her fingers. It would be icy to the touch to a normal human, but with her warm, Saiyan body temperature she felt little discomfort. She sat down on the boulder, and took off her shoes, wiggling her bruised toes around in the open air. She placed her feet into the water, letting the current rush past, creating a gentle massage.

Aria stirred the water with her hand, and winced as the liquid permeated the cuts on her fingers. She closed her eyes, and began to breathe rhythmically. Her mind began to clear, and the world around her faded. The Comatose aura was colored a deep violet when she entered, and shadowlike forms protruded from the clouds. She floated aimlessly for a time, content to take in the beauty of her hidden world. It wasn't long before her thoughts materialized into forms.

Perhaps it wasn't the wager that she set that caused Vegeta to train her. It must have been something else, something deeper. She thought back to the day they met, the odd interruption at the tournament, him speaking of the Saiyan race and Selera, her mother.

A vibration shook the chasm at the mention.

* * *

When she returned to Capsule Corp later that afternoon to try again to talk with Vegeta, he oddly was not in the gravity chamber. Her brow furrowed.

Bulma was out from working in the lab, fixing herself a small snack. Aria saw her through the window, and walked briskly to the door.

"Bulma?" Aria asked as she entered the house. "Where's Vegeta?"

Bulma did not look up from her task, and wore a frown on her face.

"He's taking a shower. I wouldn't try confronting him though. He's a little more grumpy than usual."

Aria bit her lip.

"Yeah, about that—"

Bulma scowled.

"Vegeta's very proud, and doesn't take well to repeated offenses of disrespect."

Aria tensed up. So Bulma knew about what happened.

"It's important."

Bulma exhaled sharply.

"Just don't push it, Aria," she said coldly.

She picked up her tray, and turned on her heel back toward the lab, deliberately not making eye contact with Aria. Aria grimaced, and sat down at the table with a thump. Vegeta must have taken his hostility toward her out on Bulma.

She crossed her arms and waited.

A half hour passed, most of it spent tapping the table with her fingers or glancing wearily out the window. She ran a hand through her hair, and let her forehead fall to the table. His attitude surrounding Selera was very odd, now that she thought back to it. He was evasive when questioned about her, and defensive when someone tried to form a connection.

Her daze was broken by heavy footfalls coming down the stairs. She sat bolt upright, then scrambled to stand.

Vegeta groaned when he saw Aria, her hands folded, looking like a battered and dejected puppy.

"You had better not try another pathetic plea," he grumbled.

Aria almost snapped back, but resisted.

"I just have a question."

He raised an eyebrow. Aria took a deep breath.

"How did you know my mother?"

Vegeta's eyes flickered.

"I don't see any point in asking me this."

"I know almost nothing about her, and you're the only one left who knew her personally. I want to know how you met."

The flickering in his eyes was distinctly more apparent.

"That's none of your business."

"It is if you're the only person left who knew her."

Vegeta grew frigid.

"You have the tape, that should be enough for you."

Aria was shocked by how insulting the remark was. It was an entirely different breed of callous disregard, even for Vegeta.

"_Please_, tell me," she said earnestly, fighting back a seething retort. Vegeta growled, utterly disgusted by the fact that she would attempt to command him to do anything, especially after her pitiful display of weakness the night before. But he knew that she was just as stubborn as he was.

"You won't leave me alone until I do, will you?"

Aria bit her lip and shook her head.

Vegeta sighed, and slid his hand down his face. He detested giving into anything, but remark he made earlier surprised even himself. For that, he felt a distinct need to oblige her. He pursed his lips, irked by the fact that his time on earth had grown him a conscience.

"Damnit," he said in a low voice. "This is to be kept confidential, understood?"

Aria gulped, and nodded.

The recently finished gravity room was the quietest and most secluded place on the grounds, so it was naturally the perfect choice to begin the conversation. Aria shut the door behind them as they went inside, half-expecting to talk while under increased gravity. It did feel heavier, but that was likely the mood. To her relief, Vegeta stopped before he could reach the controls.

"I don't want to waste time, so I'll just get to it," Vegeta said, without turning around.

Aria eyed him curiously; cautious of what she might hear.

"Selera was an exemplary warrior in her class, daughter of my father's right hand man, Brussul. Their family was a rich and pure bloodline, elite among all Saiyans. Our fathers were practically brothers, a rare relationship among our race. Selera and I frequently dined at the same table during political meetings, and often sparred during our junior training regimen."

"She was that close to royalty—" Aria breathed.

Vegeta wheeled round, glaring at her.

"Do you want to hear this or not?"

Aria snapped her mouth shut.

"Selera and I eventually grew fond of each other. We became comrades, fighting alongside one another against hoards of Saibamen. One day, during a flank exercise, Selera overheard her name as her father was talking to mine in the foyer of the training chamber. My father went on about the future of our race, and that he wouldn't be around forever and some other mundane tripe. And then we heard both of our names, and a reference to marriage."

Aria leaned in; her ears pricking up and mouth hanging open.

"As it turned out," he closed his eyes, "We were betrothed since infancy."

Aria snapped backward.

"WHAT?"

"Don't you know what it means, imbecile?"

"I know what it means! I'm just…caught off guard."

"It's not that surprising. Betrothals were quite common among Saiyans."

Aria sat on the tile, sighing heavily in an attempt to relax.

"We carried on as if nothing happened," said Vegeta, a bit too quickly.

Aria tilted her head. He put his hands on his hips.

"What, did you expect a tale of blossoming romance? Utter nonsense. There was no sentimental _attachment_ between us, but I guess that doesn't stop you from making assumptions_._"

She rested her head in her hand, a little disappointed.

"So, what happened next?"

"A few days later I was sent off planet. I received word of its destruction while I was on a mission."

"I'm sorry," said Aria solemnly, "That must have been terrible."

"Feh," was his laconic reply.

Aria shuddered. Vegeta truly was a coldhearted man.

"How do you think she got off?"

"Her father was resourceful, and likely saw it coming. That's probably how she managed to find an escape route."

Aria rubbed her chin with her forefinger.

"What about my father?"

Vegeta scowled.

"Looked like a low-class footman to me. I'm betting he was sent as her bodyguard."

Aria felt another pang of disappointment. So her father would remain a mystery. She massaged her temples with her fingers. After a few moments of awkward silence, she reluctantly stood up.

"I suppose I should leave now," she said, a bit hopeful that he might stop her. But, true to form, he didn't even twitch. She turned toward the door.

"Thank you," she said softly.

Before she could even take a step, she heard Vegeta clear his throat.

"And just where do you think you're going?"

Surprised, Aria craned her neck to look at him. He still hadn't budged, and had a dubious look in his eyes.

"I thought that I…"

Aria stopped at his knowing glance, and lowered her eyes.

"It was that obvious, huh?"

Vegeta smirked and shot forward, catching Aria off guard. Aria gasped and quickly got into a defensive stance. She barely blocked the punch that nearly rammed through her stomach. Aria's eyes widened. Even she didn't expect to actually succeed in blocking that.

Vegeta growled, and sprung backward to the panel, pumping up the gravity to 100 g. He bent down to prepare for another charge.

"Try and block that again," he roared.

The smile on Aria's face could have lit up all of West City.

* * *

Almost since the day Trunks could walk, Vegeta inculcated a sense of pride and strength into him. He cracked down constantly and mercilessly, holding Trunks to only the highest of standards. If contested, it would either fall on deaf ears or be met with severe punishment. While he did enjoy the thrill of a challenge, he was never a true fighter at heart, preferring flights through the mountains to working in the ship. It wasn't his nature to go against the grain and work as his father did. This served to his detriment when beginning his solo training.

After sleeping late into the morning, Trunks emerged at noon to begin his conditioning. He would train at half his father's maximum gravity, about 300g, and begin with the same warm ups Vegeta and Aria did. Although he did not have his father as his guide, Trunks remembered most of the techniques taught to him. Everything was more difficult, as he had to push himself just as hard as Vegeta normally would. He didn't enjoy it, but the thought of his father's disappointed glare spurred him on. When Aria and Vegeta exited the chamber in the evening, he went in and trained until dawn, when he collapsed onto the tile.

At first he thought it was a hallucination. After all, he didn't remember Vegeta or Aria ever entering his room. Then he realized that he wasn't in his room at all. The cold tile seemed to appear beneath his skin, and the ceiling of the GR spun wildly above him.

"Think he's been like that all night?" said Aria's voice in the distance.

Vegeta examined the boy. Nothing appeared to be broken, and skin was relatively unscathed. Even he himself would suffer more damage after sleeping in 300 times gravity.

"Not likely."

Aria headed for the boy.

"I'll help him up."

Vegeta shot a hand out, blocking her path.

"He'll do it himself," he said gruffly.

His command startled her. The boy was obviously in need of help. Though, after her encounter two days before was any indicator, Vegeta did not offer anything that resembled it. Aria reluctantly obeyed, looking helplessly at Trunks. Trunks grunted and rolled onto his stomach. He heaved himself up, not daring to look into Vegeta's eyes.

"There, that's how it's done," said Vegeta, traces of pride lining his utterance.

A small smile broke Trunks' lips. He looked at Aria, who was now wearing an indignant scowl. He silently nodded and trudged out of the chamber, slamming the door behind him. As Vegeta went to turn on the gravity, Aria couldn't help but wonder what as was going on between the two of them. They hardly spoke now, and she got the impression that this was a recent development. Vegeta flipped the switch, causing Aria to buckle under the pressure again. But this time, she found herself much more adept at holding herself up.

"Vegeta?" she asked, shifting her weight to a more comfortable position. Vegeta merely grunted to acknowledge her.

"Did you stop training Trunks when I got here?"

Vegeta paused for a moment, and grimaced. The girl had a knack for bringing up sensitive issues.

"What of it?"

"Well, why?"

Vegeta growled.

"The business between my son and I is my own. I don't want to hear another word about it."

Aria pursed her lips.

"Yes, sir," she reluctantly said, resigning her conquest.

At least, she resigned it vocally.

Aria scolded herself for using her telepathy as a subversion tactic, but she saw no other way to understand him. He certainly didn't _talk_ about his problems, and didn't show them on his face.

She was deeply surprised at how easy it was to enter his head. Vegeta didn't even notice the soft prickling on the back of his neck. One would think that Vegeta would have the strongest mental defenses of anyone on this planet (not including herself), but that theory was quickly disproven. Perhaps the stress of keeping in his emotions made his mental fabric weak.

The vein of issues that ran between Vegeta and his son ran much deeper than Aria thought. While she did have a basic knowledge of the events of the Cell Games, she could never have dreamed that it would have such an effect on Vegeta. The man saw his future son surpass him before the boy was a blip in existence. Not only that, but the boy succeeded in killing the tyrant who held him captive for most of his life, when he failed. What's more, he had already watched his son fall dead before him, with nothing he could do to stop it. Aria couldn't help but get chills at the thought.

He raised his current son with as much care as a hardened Saiyan could, but residual envy still plagued the Saiyan prince. So much, in fact, that it remained embedded in his mind throughout Trunks' childhood and adolescence. The poor boy never knew what hit him when his father began to grow distant, at the height of his training no less! Trunks was so close to getting to the next level, when Vegeta just stopped coming to the gravity sessions. When confronted, the prince merely waved a hand, dismissing the boy, telling him that the training was over. Despite his actions, the Saiyan had a deep love for his son. Though everything he did contradicted it, his inner bond with the boy was stronger than Aria could have ever imagined.

She would have retreated calmly, but was jolted out of her trance by Vegeta's hard smack to the side of her head. Her eyes flickered, and she rubbed her temple where the bones of his hand had impacted.

"Stop doing whatever it is you're doing in that hollow skull of yours."

Aria's stomach dropped.

"S-sorry!" she sputtered. "Please don't be mad!"

Vegeta put his hand on his hips.

"Mad about _what?"_ he hissed.

Aria let out a quick breath of relief, and quickly composed herself.

"Nothing. It's nothing."

Vegeta eyed her dubiously, but honestly didn't care enough to keep on about it.

"Better have been," he muttered, flicking on the controls.

The gravity heaved on and nearly plastered Aria to the ground.

"This isn't 100g!" she shouted.

Vegeta smirked.

"Nope, it's 150, now keep up!"

And then he launched forward.


	10. Chapter 10: An Unexpected Mentor

Four months had passed, and everyone was exhausted.

Every night, Aria's muscles screamed out in agony, while she wore a sly smile.

As the training progressed, she learned more and more. Each time she fought, Aria came to realize how much of a master tactician Vegeta was. Each blow he dealt during a battle was precisely aimed to disarm and disable a foe. Prior to and after a battle, Vegeta would exercise his mental strategy. Discreet body language, cast off as nothing, could mean the difference from one feeling to another. He watched her like a hawk, taking in her subtleties, making sure he knew every strength, flaw and weakness of her character. This helped her decide against exposing her mental abilities to him, as she needed at least one advantage.

Soon, Aria adapted his technique. Vegeta was infinitely harder to read, as he was always completely self-aware of his movements and words. Ever so often, a rare opportunity would arise for her to catch him slightly off guard, seeing his true nature for a split second. It took her months to find a crack in his cold exterior. She couldn't even be sure that she saw it, but one day, when she mentioned Bulma's tenacity regarding some mundane task, an infinitesimal smile broke his lips for an instant. She cherished these moments with pride.

But now, Aria had hit a plateau. She could match Vegeta's movements exactly under 400 times earth gravity, but could not even move under 450g. No matter what she tried, including going Super Saiyan against Vegeta's instruction, nothing made any sort of dent.

Her mental regimen was no less difficult. Each evening, after a rigorous workout, she entered Comatose. A different challenge presented itself within her mind every time. Constantly, she confronted her innermost thoughts and desires, driven to the edge of madness. She could not get past her sneaking suspicion that this was as far as her body would go, consequently blocking any mental progress.

Despite the constant barrage of exercises and mental strain, Aria remained ever distracted. On occasion, when she exited and entered the GR, she would catch a glimpse of lavender locks in the corner of her vision. At dinner, with just the Briefs family, a flash of two periwinkle eyes would enter her gaze. Throughout the year, she found herself becoming increasingly preoccupied with thoughts of Trunks. He was a very handsome boy, with a striking jaw line and strong features. Aria had never felt anything like it. As time progressed, it grew harder and harder for her to expel him from her head.

Trunks trained just as fervently, and he too was caught up with visions and thoughts of Aria. But these were envious. After seeing his father swayed so easily to take on someone he barely knew, when he had to claw his way to the slightest of his approvals, something snapped. Trunks had worked himself to within an inch of his sanity, barely able to get up in the evenings to get into the gravity chamber. Some days, he skipped training altogether, and confined himself to his bed.

Aria was quickly becoming one of the strongest warriors Vegeta had ever seen. Every day she grew closer to his skill level, without even seeming to try. Her ease infuriated him, reminding him of his old adversary, Kakarot. Yet, in a way, his pride grew stronger as she did. Much like with Goku, he would only refer to her as her Saiyan name, Katal. It was a mark of respect for his race, and contempt of her human influence. He was rapidly approaching the next level, so close he could almost taste it. Still, he detested the barrier he could not break. The next transformation remained elusive.

* * *

Bulma's idea for a day at the beach delighted all involved, save Vegeta, who disdainfully accepted it. All of the Z fighters, including Bulma and Bra, decided to skip training for a weekend of winding down and relaxing. While they did want to relax, playing Saiyan-Scale Football and Midair Frisbee would attract a bit too much attention in the more inhabited areas, so they were thrilled to find a gorgeous, untouched white sand beach about sixty miles outside of West City. The waves washed over the warm sand, and seagulls cawed overhead. Bra and Pan played gleefully in the water, creating large waves as they splashed about. Bulma was busy setting up the picnic, with food piled up to fill the Saiyans' massive appetite. She watched fondly as Goten, Gohan, Goku and Krillin toss the Frisbee at blazing speeds over the sand, bursting into laughter as Krillin tripped, ramming headfirst into a dune. Vegeta and Piccolo watched with their arms folded, mirroring each other's scowls at the earthen banter. They glanced at each other as Krillin tumbled into the dune, tiny smirks playing across their faces. Trunks took to walking on the edge of the sea, gazing at his father who stood near a reedy hillside, scoffing as always. Trunks grinned to himself, and picked up the volleyball Bra and Pan had left unattended. Just this once, Vegeta could he be bothered to have a little fun. He lifted it up above his head.

"Hey, dad! Think fast!"

Vegeta was clearly not paying attention, as the ball landed smack dab in the middle of his face. Trunks' stomach lurched, and he flushed pale white. That was most definitely not the kind of attention he was looking for. Vegeta had a distinct red mark in the middle of his forehead and nose. He tossed the ball up and down in his hand with a bitter smirk.

"THINK FAST, BOY!"

He shot the ball at Trunks like a bullet. It cocked the boy in the jaw, forcing him to land with a large splash in the cool ocean. He surfaced and coughed up some water, forcing a laugh as he did so.

Aria watched Trunks and Vegeta as she was taking off her tennis shoes, nearly peeling off her filthy socks. She let the sand filter between her exposed toes and shuddered as she removed her leather gloves, noticing a line of grime on her knuckles and palms. She slid off her tank top, and stepped out of her shorts, revealing a sporty, cerulean, two-piece swimsuit. A giant grin appeared on her face as she examined Trunks floundering in the water.

She ran to the ocean, and launched into the air when she reached the edge, tucking into a ball. Trunks looked up in shock as she barreled toward him.

"BANZAI!" she bellowed.

Trunks dove out of the way of the cannon ball, only to be swept up in the tidal wave that followed the colossal splash. He somersaulted once in the water, and jetted to the top.

Aria's tinkling laugh rung in the air as he broke the surface. Drops of water glossed over her shoulders and arms, and created an ethereal gleam on her face. Her smile was dazzling, appearing that much brighter when her back was to the sun. Trunks blushed, and ran a hand nervously through his sopping hair. She averted her eyes, only emphasizing the awkwardness between them.

"Lunch!" Bulma called out, bracing herself and the long wooden table.

What followed was a stampede of heavy footsteps, racing to get first dibs on the tender steaks and hot rolls. After the first hefty course, the table watched in silence and awe as Aria battled it out with Goku in a rice-eating contest. Goku fell backwards, completely stuffed. Aria smiled with her full cheeks, slurping down the last of her fifteenth bowl.

"Holy cow," Gohan breathed, "Goten and I combined couldn't beat Dad at an eating contest!"

She let out a large belch that shook the table.

"Thanks," she chirped, patting at her cheek daintily with a napkin.

They finished another course, and began talking about their experiences training. Goku went first, with Gohan and Goten chiming in. Goten had finally ascended to a second grade Super Saiyan, prompting congratulatory gestures all around. Trunks kept silent, as did Aria and Vegeta.

"I've always wondered," Aria mused as she bit down on a strip of sirloin, "What kinds of moves do you guys know?"

The question baffled the table.

"What do you mean?" asked Krillin, wiping his mouth on his sleeve.

"You know, ki style moves, like Goku's Kamehameha," she said excitedly, turning to Goku. "I'd love to learn that by the way!"

Goku scratched his head. He didn't remember ever mentioning the Kamehameha.

"Well—It's a little complicated..."

"We all have different moves," Krillin interjected, "Some are offense, defense, and some are good for a quick getaway."

He looked away in embarrassment.

"I hate to say that I'm the one that uses those most."

Aria giggled.

"I'd still like to hear some."

Vegeta scoffed.

"Asking fighting advice from a mere human?" he sneered.

Aria shot him a look.

"If there's one thing I've learned from you, it's that all moves are useful," she retorted, and motioned to Krillin to continue.

Vegeta rolled his eyes and slunk back in his chair, muttering to himself.

Krillin puffed out his chest, and reached his arms behind his head.

"Well, I've got a pretty nifty one. It can cut through absolutely anything! Wanna see?"

Aria grinned. This was something she wanted to put to the test. She nodded, and rose from the table.

"Let's all go, I've certainly got an itch to see Krillin in action again," Goku said boisterously, getting up from his seat. Everyone agreed, except for Vegeta, who was content to sit at the table and sulk. The group walked toward one of the rocky outcroppings on the beach, stirring with anticipation. Krillin cracked his knuckles, and stretched out his arms.

"I'm a bit rusty, but this old guy's still got a bit of spring."

He leaned to his side into a lunge.

"Hey, Goku. Could you grab a rock?"

Goku nodded and headed towards the edge of the outcropping, picking up a boulder the size of his entire upper body with ease.

"Just say when," he called out.

Krillin smirked and bent his knees, raising his arms into form. His legs were positioned a little wider than shoulder width apart. One arm was tucked in, and the other was held straight above his head, palm facing up. Aria folded her arms, something she always did when she concentrated. Krillin summoned a flat disk in his hand.

"Alright, go!"

Goku heaved the stone into the air.

"Destructo Disk!"

Krillin summoned a large golden disk in his palm, and hastily threw the glowing scythe at the rock. Aria gasped as it sliced through, causing the boulder to split neatly in two. The two halves of the rock fell to the ground with a thud, and the disk disappeared. A small applause broke out among the group. Krillin clapped his hands together, and stood back to show off his feat.

"You're getting pretty good with that," said Gohan, examining the two fallen halves of the boulder. Aria rubbed her chin. It was a very impressive technique. She'd never seen something cut so precisely. Even better, it wasn't too difficult to produce.

"Let me try."

Krillin laughed, as did the others around her.

"It's not something you can just whip out," he chuckled.

Her eyes narrowed.

"Why not?"

Krillin's laugh subsided. He looked at her quizzically. She was being serious.

"It's a technique I've worked on for a long time. It took me years to get it right."

Aria smirked.

"Then you can correct me if I mess up."

She got into form. Krillin's eyes opened wide. Her form was already very good, and she'd only seen it once. Trunks eyes switched from Krillin to Aria.

"I don't know about this," Trunks murmured to Goten, who was standing beside him, "This technique is kind of dangerous."

"You don't really think she'll get it right off the bat do you?" Goten replied skeptically.

Krillin scratched his head.

"Well Aria, you can try it. I don't know if you'll be able to make one, but—"

"DESTRUCTO DISK!"

The glowing frisbee appeared in her hand. It was perfectly rounded, and teeming with power. The group was in awe of her feat. She leaned back and aimed it at a rock out on the ocean. Just as she was ready to release it, she suddenly began to stumble on the sand. The disk had a mind of its own, and was pulling her whole body backwards. In her panic, she tried to let it go forward, but it slid out of her hand and began careening towards the frantic Z fighters. They split away from the disk as it sliced through the sand, heading straight for the dinner table.

And Bulma was directly in its path.

"Mom, look out!" Trunks cried.

Bulma turned around and let out a horrific scream. Vegeta whizzed toward the woman, and swept her up just as the disk cut the table in two, scattering food and shattering the dishes all over the grass. The energy beam slit the hill, and exploded a hundred feet later, sending up dust and debris.

When the blast ceased, everyone glared at Aria.

"What was that?" Vegeta roared, "You almost cut my wife in half!"

Aria put her head in her hands.

"I thought I've trained you better than this!"

Vegeta's eyes bore into the skin of her face as she looked at him. Guilt tore through her like wildfire. There was _fear_ in his eyes! If there was one emotion she never felt emanate from Vegeta, that would be it. Her knees began to shake the standoff chilled the air. The afternoon sun suddenly did not seem so bright any longer. She looked desperately around the group, only to be met with a hostile glance from each one. Even Trunks couldn't stand to look at her. Aria eventually retreated from the group, taking off toward the mountains. An eerie silence descended on the company. The sun began to head towards the horizon as many minutes passed without a word. To everyone's surprise, it was Krillin who followed after her. The former monk found Aria on a cliff a few miles from where they were. When he landed, her eyes were wet with tears as she gazed out onto the oceanic horizon. She hardly even bothered to find a suitable place to sit, as the craggy cliff left scrapes against her skin. He took a deep breath before approaching and squatting next to the forlorn Saiyan.

"To be fair," he began.

"Krillin, don't," Aria hushed him, wiping a damp cheek, "It was all my fault, and I take full responsibility."

"Don't be so hard on yourself. It took me years to master that technique. You can't expect to get it on your first try."

"I almost made cold cuts out of Bulma!"

Krillin winced.

"Yeah, there was that. But you aren't just going to give up, are you?"

"This is the second time something like this has happened Krillin," Aria murmured, "First I almost blew up Capsule Corp, and now I could have chopped someone in half. I lost control, again!"

She slammed her fist into the ground, creating cracks in the rock.

"I just…feel so useless."

She buried her head in her knees. Krillin chuckled, and put a hand on her shoulder.

"If there's one thing I know, it's what it feels like to be useless."

Aria turned her head to the side to look at the monk.

"Seriously," he grumbled, "I have the power level the size of a pea. You can blow up planets with a flick of your finger."

Aria giggled.

"But I never gave up though. I couldn't help much, and even got killed a couple of times. Still, I jumped in where I could, usually to help with a hasty retreat. Oh! That reminds me."

He stood up and examined the sun inching its way towards the horizon. Aria squinted her eyes, wondering what he could possibly be up to.

"This technique's a little safer, and it's a great move for buying time."

Aria gave him a quizzical look.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that this isn't the type of technique you use to blow someone up."

She got to her feet.

"Then what does it do?"

Krillin grinned.

"I'll show you."

He floated up towards the sun until he practically disappeared into it. Aria shielded her eyes from the glare, trying to make out his form. His hands were near his head, and his fingertips lined the edges of his face.

"I apologize in advance," he called.

"Apologize for wha—"

"Solar Flare!"

All Aria could see was the scorching light. She let out a wail, and dropped to the ground. Her eyes snapped shut, and began to water profusely. There was nothing but the pain as her eyeballs seared in her sockets. That bastard blinded her!

"Your vision will come back in a couple of minutes," she heard Krillin's voice in front of her.

She figured that a punch to the face would suffice enough, despite the fact that she wanted to kill him. To her shock, she only hit air. It had to be impossible. He was right in front of her! Surely he couldn't have…

"Missed me," his voice said softly, behind her this time. She would have wrenched her arm backward to slice Krillin, but quickly realized that something was amiss.

She couldn't sense his power level.

When she tried to open her eyes, she could only see a blur of blue and brown, where the cliff and the sky blended together like shoddy watercolor.

It slowly started to clear, until she could make out where the cliff ended and the water began.

"What the hell was that, Krillin?" she snapped, "And why was your power suppressed?

"Noticed that, eh? It's key with using this trick. I picked up that little gem from an old friend. It's the Taiyouken, or "Solar Flare" technique. As you can see, it blinds your opponent."

"Yeah, I can _see_ that," she spat, "But aren't you incredibly vulnerable with all of your power suppressed?"

"Not exactly. The beauty of this move is that no matter how weak you are, it will render your opponents' attacks useless. No one can hit something that they can't find."

Aria's vision returned to normal after a few seconds of muttering and clawing at her eyes.

She had half a mind to reach out and strangle the man when he entered her gaze, but in her rage, she knew that this new move could turn out to be very useful. And she did need a good kick in the ass for her mistake back at the beach.

"I can't seem to hit anything even when my eyes are open," she grumbled, restraining her urge, "Except the things I try to avoid."

Krillin laughed, and began to float above the cliff. He gazed back to the white sand in the distance, squinting his eyes to see the gang as little more than tiny dots.

"Come on," he held out a hand, which Aria hesitantly grasped. "Let's go."

Aria took a deep breath, and followed her unexpected mentor back toward the beach.

When they touched down, Aria noticed a distinct decrease in tension. As much as she wanted to run and hide, her body disobeyed. Instead, it and helped her to stand tall and face her shame.

"I'm sorry for what I did," she said, lowering her head, "It will never happen again."

She had never meant that statement as much as she did now.

"I will make sure of that," Vegeta's voice said gruffly from the rear of the pack. He walked to the front, and stared her down.

"When I'm finished with you, not one blast you throw will be off its mark."

Aria gulped and nodded, bowing to her teacher.

While everyone was uncomfortable with Aria for a time, they all conveyed a tacit forgiveness. By the time the sun had set, the mood was once again pleasant. The fire was crackling as the gang roasted marshmallows, poking fun at old battles past and comedic moments throughout the day.

The stars were out that night, glittering gentle hues of green, blue, and gold.

So many distant planets, so far out of reach.

Yet so close.


	11. Chapter 11: The Galaton Emperor

From his conception, Marcus was destined for great and terrible things.

The Galatons were a thriving conglomerate in the galaxy, investing heavily in the Planet Trade. What planets they decided to keep were enslaved for their resources and wealth, and those that were classified as useless were erased from existence. Despite their outward malevolence, and lack of anything resembling "community," Gale had a thriving economy due to their success in the planet trade. They didn't concern themselves with their own resources. After all, the black rock had little value to begin with, and thousands of planets holding seemingly limitless bounty were ripe for harvest.

It was here, approximately twelve hundred years prior to present time, that things began to grow very tumultuous for the North Quadrant. So began the "Millennium Cleanse," as the Galatons fondly referred to it. During this grim period, planets incapable of sustaining a Galaton colony were destroyed, an often deleterious enterprise to any inhabitants of that planet's solar system. Any race not capable of defending itself was annihilated for weakness. Those powerful enough to put up a fight were warred with until defeated. According to Galaton record, two thousand, four hundred and twenty six planets were destroyed over the span of the millennium.

Lestair and Iliae, the emperor and empress of Planet Gale and its colonies, were well known throughout the North Quadrant for their ruthlessness, as they were the originators of the Millennium Cleanse. So when Marcus first entered the world, it came as no surprise that he took after his parents. But what happened during his tenth year of age shocked even the most hateful of Galatons. Marcus lusted for the throne, almost since his birth. He deemed it necessary to take control at the soonest possible moment, be it by force or otherwise. His parents didn't even have time to feel the flesh melt off of their bones as they were disintegrated.

That was the moment he attained Suscitatis.

Suscitatis or "The Awakening," is akin to a light switch; only instead of illumination and enlightenment, the warrior is plunged into a chasm of malice and hatred. Purged of all light within him, a black hole of seemingly limitless power is created. Marcus thrived in his newfound state, and took his power to new heights. He ruled over the Galaton Empire for a century, delving into the planet trade with an aggression rivaled only by its leader, Frieza. Gale itself fell into a state of disrepair. No one questioned him, or doubted his rule, mostly for fear for their lives. That is, until Marcus began to detest not only those who were weak among other races, but also those of his own kind.

Fighting trials were established to weed out the weakest of his race. They were tournaments, fights to the death, and the victor claimed his prize, the right to live.

At first, the Galatons made sport of it, delight at seeing the more pathetic of his kind slaughtered in combat. But as time went on, a disquieted murmur spread through Gale, and things began to crumble. An underground movement to overthrow Marcus stirred in the shadows. Many Galatons had been killed in the trials, prompting ill feelings toward their emperor. Then, the whispers turned into action.

The riots started small, barely a hundred or so Galatons to an event, and were usually squashed by Marcus' Rominen, the Galaton equivalent to the Gestapo. However, more and more gathered in the violent protests, and the Rominen had difficulty keeping them subdued. As the riots grew larger, Marcus eventually came to the conclusion that ruling this planet and his people was no longer beneficent to him.

The horrific genocide was the first of many.

He was not satisfied with the systematic murder of his own race, so he spread to other worlds, murdering the inhabitants without conscience or restraint. Billions of lives were lost, swallowed in his magenta bursts of malevolent energy. It wasn't until he arrived on a small planet in the Proxima Centauri system that his attitude began to change.

Tetsau was home to a peaceful race called the Ergonites. Before, when he partook in the planet trade, he might have made use of Tetsau for resources. It was rich and abundant with crops, and the people were easily malleable. But after his less-than-congenial attitude adjustment, he would not have spared an expert fighting squad, much less a population of easily enslaved workers.

Two Saiyans also resided on Proxima Centauri, with their daughter, who was little more than two years of age. Jeiden and Selera sensed Marcus approaching, and made their final preparations. Marcus at first treated them as little more than weak opponents, but grew intrigued when he found something laying deep in Jeiden's mind with his own telepathic abilities. They tried in vain to fend him off, but were easily defeated.

Marcus found the underground bunker that their daughter was hidden in, and had every intention of killing his destined opponent when he reached it. However, when he saw her, he could not bring himself to do it. It certainly wasn't because she was a child. In fact, Marcus frequently reveled in his reputation as a slaughterer of children.

For so long he had contented to wander the galaxy without a purpose, destroying every life form that did not escape his gaze. He had always taken a sick pleasure in their demise, up until recently. To his befuddlement, he was beginning to grow bored with his endeavors. In hindsight, perhaps leaving a few alive to torture would have been more amusing, but even he did not believe that the longevity of their suffering had any effect on his current state of mind. When he saw the vision in Jeiden's head, a yearning for a challenge took hold in his blackened heart. But even the promise of a battle was simply not enough for Marcus. It would be all too easy to put a tracking device on her ship, and all too boring to wait impatiently for twenty years. It was this notion that helped him come up with the idea for a galactic scavenger hunt, with Aria as the main prize. He could continue his dirty deeds of annihilating planets along the way, but now, he had something to look for.

And so, he let her live, and sent her into the depths of space, unheeding of her direction, until now. It was a small blip in his senses from this distance, but large enough cause him to awaken from his own deep meditation. It was definitely a power level. That much was clear. But what in the world could generate a power like that?

_Unless…_

A malevolent smile adorned his features, and a silent cackle erupted from his chest, inaudible in the vacuum of space.


	12. Chapter 12: Solace

It wasn't often that Vegeta felt pride for anyone other than himself, but Aria was a different breed of pupil. She had a determination that matched if not exceeded his own to become the best. Just as he lived in Kakarot's shadow, she lived in his. It was a bittersweet moment to see her exceed him on their last day of training together; to see her achieve what he himself could not.

Aria's training with Vegeta was by far the single hardest undertaking she had ever endured, right until the bitter end. When she hit her goal, she felt weightless, even though over six hundred times the weight of the world rested on her shoulders. When the final session ended, a piece of Aria's heart once filled with thoughts of battle grew cold and empty. There was no ceremony, save the brief thanks exchanged before she exited the GR. She was rather disappointed, but consoled herself with the fact that she couldn't expect much more than that from her mentor.

* * *

Aria found that she could find wisdom in the most unlikely places. Although he was the most experienced fighter, Vegeta was not the only one she tapped for training. After she finished with the Saiyan prince, she decided to take the pint-sized Krillin up on his offer to teach her. With Krillin's instruction, she mastered the Destructo Disk and Solar Flare techniques. The two grew fond of one another, and remained in touch even after Aria had mastered the moves.

For the next few months, Aria sought solace in the mountains just outside of West City, frequenting them often for independent training. In her sessions, she focused on learning and developing techniques, top-notch in their complexity and usability. Incizor, a new move of her own, was a more efficient version of Krillin's technique. The disk was condensed into a ki blade, protruding from the tips of her fingers. It could be used at range by throwing it like a boomerang, or in hand to hand, using it as a light sword. It was her personal favorite.

She adapted another move of hers after watching a practice battle between Goku and Gohan. The Kamehameha wave was a technique she wanted to learn since Vegeta's mention of it in the GR, and now that she'd seen it in action, her mind began to swell with new ideas. The Kaiomeha Wave, as she liked to call it, was an adapted version of its parent. It had the structure and raw power of the Kamehameha as its base, and the added element of her innermost power as a bolster. Aria found that her strength stemmed from her determination, and this move was the culmination of that bond. The more indomitable her will, the more powerful the wave became.

Then, there was her ultimate move, one she had previously discovered in the storms on Groen. With the newfound skills she attained in her training with Vegeta, she was finally able to craft it into nothing less than a perfect final blow. Because of its power, Aria did not reveal it to her master, or to anyone else. It remained hidden away, surfacing as a fraction of its true self for only an instant during the thunderstorms in the mountains.

When confronted, she attributed the spikes in power to her experimentation with mental illusory techniques. The others did not have a full grasp on the abilities of her mind, so they accepted her excuse.

* * *

Aria sliced through a boulder with her Incizor as she hurdled through the air, splitting it neatly into six parts. She then sprung backward, and fired precise ki blasts at the new, small rocks, disintegrating them on contact. To clear the rock dust, she shot punches forward at blinding speeds into the air. The wind from the punches' sheer speed blew the particles away, revealing a sweaty, yet even-headed Aria. Every punch was so much easier outside of the GR. Her movements were so lithe, so effortless. It felt like she was punching through feathers when she struck a blow to a nearby oak tree. Leaves rained all around her as the mighty oak splintered to bits. The ground was coated with leaves and splintered wood, and the surrounding trees had toppled from the force. She winced, hardly from pain, but from the damage she dealt the poor foliage.

She looked up at the sun, which was framed with wisps of cloud. It was about noon, on a summer's day in August. She hardly kept track of the time anymore, taking each rising of the sun as it came. But something was different today. When she counted the days on her fingers since she last looked at a calendar, she gasped in shock. It was August 15th, her twentieth birthday.

The twentieth year of her life.

Her hands curled into fists. Marcus could arrive any day now, as her father predicted. She was as ready as she could be, with a newfound strength that rivaled Goku. But what if it wasn't enough? What if he still was too great a power to face?

She decided to venture back to her familiar meadow by the foothills for thought, as her mental fortitude was waning after the long days alone. When she got to her spot near the large boulder by the stream, she inhaled the fresh mountain air. She laid back on the grass, and let her eyes flutter shut. The song of the brook was gentle to her ears after the constant sharp crashes and explosions from her solo spars. Her thoughts drifted away from the impending battle, and wandered from place to place, not following any sort of concrete theme. That is, until a certain lavender-locked boy popped into her head.

Aria had a certain fondness for Trunks since day one. Perhaps it was the fact that he was half Saiyan, and a very attractive one at that. His body was chiseled like the others, but not overly so. He had his mother's hair, save the color, and a face that was blended traits of both Bulma and Vegeta. While his facial features were slightly more in keeping with Vegeta's, there was an air of softness about them, in stark contrast to his father. She often wondered when he grew into the kind and gentle soul that he was. Bulma frequently mentioned how cocky and stingy he could be and there was a definite darker, more mysterious side to him as well.

For the sake of her training, she deprived herself the comforts of companionship. Now that it was over, she longed for it deeply. Trunks had many of the qualities she sought in a companion, and some traits she never thought she would find appealing. Her past mates were usually much more hardheaded like she was, but she found that she quickly grew bored with them. Trunks was different. His passivity and innate kindness resonated with her. Those qualities never came naturally to Aria, so his nature complemented her own.

She breathed in deeply, letting her mind's aura turn shades of pink.

* * *

Three months after Aria ended her stint with Vegeta, Trunks was up to 650 times earth gravity in the Gravity Capsule. It was surprising enough to find that he could manage well enough at 600g, the same weight as his father, but breaking 650g was another matter entirely. He felt invigorated, with a seed of contempt at his success. The Saiyan decided to end his gravity session, and went to seek out a member of the Son family for sparring practice.

Goten was his best friend since he was a toddler, but Trunks found the match tedious. The Briefs boy had always been slightly stronger than his counterpart, but the gap had grown exponentially in the past year. Goten must have slacked off, even while awaiting a devastating evil. The scruffy-haired youth eventually conceded, unable to break out of a headlock. The boys ended up laughing as they always did when they finished a fight, and started catching up on the past few months. Trunks found himself wishing he had spent more time with his friend, realizing just how much he missed whilst slaving away in the GR. The sun began to dip behind the mountainous hills in the distance, dying them a rich espresso. Goten bid his friend goodbye and took off in the direction of his house, likely going home to a scolding from Chi-Chi. Trunks waved as he shrunk into the distance, disappearing behind the chocolate hills.

Reds, oranges and pinks richly colored the sky around the glowing orb in the sky. The light reflected off of the puffy clouds, basking the valley in a serene glow. Rays filtered through the greenery, casting a yellow-green light on the meadow where the boys held their match. It was rare to find a tranquil moment such as this one. Long stints alone in the GR superseded his days wandering about the countryside with Goten. The grass of the meadow was replaced with cold tile, and the sprawling hills were traded in for a claustrophobic chamber. He felt a strange sense of loss, as if the whole thing was for naught. Nothing he ever did seemed worthwhile. Despite his endeavors to do so, he still couldn't impress his father. Try as he might, Vegeta remained ever indifferent.

Goten had a girlfriend now, and even had plans to propose. While Goten drabbled on about Valese, the Briefs boy just shook his head and chuckled, happy for his friend's good fortune…and a little envious. Trunks had dated before, rather frequently, actually. Girls flocked to him for his good looks, and it didn't hurt that he was the heir to the Capsule fortune either. He never took too much interest in the girls he took out. The outings were, frankly, little more than social exercises. Date after date, their true intentions were revealed.

All of them were after his money.

He stopped dating around the time of the World Martial Arts tournament last year, fed up with their pathetic pleas. Trunks longed for someone to whom money didn't matter. He wanted someone he could talk to about anything. He wanted to be accepted for everything that he was underneath, not for his happenstance _earthen_ lineage. But he couldn't show his true self out in the human world. His being the son of a Saiyan prince wasn't exactly a topic of table conversation, and the fact that he could blow entire cities to rubble without batting an eyelash? Hardly. No girl could possibly understand who he truly was.

No human girl…

A well of emotions bubbled to the surface as an intriguing thought popped into his head.

_What about Aria?_

He'd thought about it before, but the romantic urges were always quickly extinguished. Except, they weren't this time. He did have many negative feelings towards her, but nearly all of them were associated with his father, not Aria in her own right. The petty jealousy seemed so trivial now as he took in the beauty of the twilight. When he really thought about it, she was exactly what he'd been looking for. She was strong willed, intelligent, and had no interest in money. Plus, she was the only female on this planet that could actually relate to him. She was Saiyan, pureblooded in fact. If anyone were to understand him, it would be her.

It was a heavy irony that he wasn't completely ready or willing to accept. He would have to confront it soon, but for now, the glowing environment around him would be his focus. In that moment, all he saw was the glint of the yellow star disappear behind the hills. Little did he know that the subject of his conflict was watching the same sunset, thinking of him, as he was of her.

* * *

The next night, Aria returned to Capsule after a full twenty-four hour Comatose session. It was a beautiful late summer evening. The green landscape was bathed in blue light from the full moon, and the trees rustled in the light breeze. Vegeta, as always, was training in the gravity chamber. Bunny and Bra were busy cleaning up the dishes from the night's massive feast, humming a tune as they washed together. Aria walked down the hall toward her room, stopping briefly to look out the window at the moon. When she turned to enter her room, she caught a glimpse of herself in the full-length mirror in the hallway. She stopped in her tracks, backing up to the mirror. Her black hair seemed thicker and bushier than before. Though her sapphire eyes had always been luminescent, a new and brighter light seemed to reflect in them, like the rays of the sun on ocean waves. Her Saiyan skin appeared smoother, her muscles sharper, and her face thinner. Aria examined herself front and back, especially the back, with a sly smile.

It wasn't until she saw a reflection in the background that she began to slink away, blushing, to her room.

"Wait."

She froze.

"Yes?" she responded brusquely, without turning around.

She tensed when she heard the light footsteps behind her.

"I need to ask you something," said the voice.


	13. Chapter 13: A Moment of Bliss

Aria turned around.

She felt a curious sensation pass through her when she saw him. Trunks had transformed before her eyes over the last year. He had matured physically, much to her delight, and he seemed sharper, more serious. In a way, though, he reverted back to that tenacious golden haired boy she'd admired eleven years before. A dark, brooding look stewed in his light blue eyes. In that instant, he strikingly resembled Vegeta.

"Shoot," she said.

"How did you do it?"

Aria raised an eyebrow.

"Do what?"

Trunks' ever-present warm smile was gone, replaced with a cold grimace.

"How did you get my father to train you?"

The question perplexed her.

"I've told the story dozens of times. I suppose it is a funny one—"

"That's not what I meant," he interjected.

"Then what do you mean?"

Trunks walked to the mirror, staring at his reflection with disdain. The moonlight glinted off of his skin and hair, casting a surreal glow. For a split second, she caught the glint of shame in his eyes, just as she had the day they first met.

"My father is a proud man. He would never even bother to take the time for a small wager, let alone take the risk of losing. Something you said or did had to spur him on."

Aria averted her gaze.

"It was a long time ago. He gave me an opportunity to prove myself as a Saiyan, and I took it. There's nothing more to it," she said, avoiding his penetrative probe.

"You and I both know that's not true," said Trunks.

His iciness startled her.

"Enlighten me then," she retorted.

"He took you on as a student, barely even knowing you. This kind of thing just doesn't happen."

Trunks' voice grew steadily louder, and more menacing.

"Had you been anyone else, _anyone else, _there's no way he would have taken you on. It's just not his way…"

His eyes flashed. There it was again, that look he had given her the night before she started her training with Vegeta. Against her better judgment, she discreetly took a glimpse into his mind with her own. She was shocked when she saw what lay hidden there. A dark envy plagued Trunks. Aria appeared to have earned Vegeta's respect after one exercise, while he was subject to the Saiyan's constant berating for the smallest of errors. His father's words had taken a toll on him, twisting and distorting themselves in his head, reminding him every day that he wasn't good enough. What a strange fate that two people so different would be so adversely shaped by the same man.

It was as if she saw straight into his soul.

"So that's it…" she murmured.

"That's what?" he snapped, noticing an odd prickling on his scalp.

Aria cut off the connection.

"Something I said," she mused, trying to cover her intrusion.

Trunks leaned in earnestly.

"'Are you too proud to take on a student, or are you afraid that one day I'll surpass you.'"

_Just like your son._

She thought it best to omit the last portion. He was angry enough as it is.

Trunks was taken aback.

"I see," he said with gritted teeth.

Aria felt sympathy for the boy. After being exposed to nothing but fighting, he remained innocent and pure. In his vulnerability, he was strangely beautiful. She envied his simplicity, something she lacked. It was pleasant relief from her complex labyrinth of emotions. He was nothing like his father, and it appealed to her.

Trunks leaned against the mirror. His shoulders relaxed a bit as he sighed.

"I'm sorry, it's just…"

"There's no need to apologize," she said.

Her eyes suddenly fixed on the moon when she glanced out the window.

"Since I was a little girl, fighting has been my vice. Every evening, I would sneak out to a large field, many miles from home. I would train until dawn, using the wind and the trees as my sparring partners."

She smiled fondly at the memory.

"Ever so often I would stop to rest, and just take in the beauty of the night forest. I remember the whisper of the branches, and the chilling breeze across my cheeks. I remember the starlight illuminating the creek like diamonds, and the calls of the owls. It's been so long since I've had that luxury. I've almost forgotten it."

Trunks listened, intrigued.

"It's a beautiful night out tonight," she said softly.

Aria's muscles ached from her training, but a newfound resolve carried her back down the hallway towards the back door. Trunks followed, watching her closely.

When she got to the door, she stopped and gently placed her hand on the hinge. She waited until she sensed Trunks behind her.

"Are you coming?" said Aria.

"To where?" he asked, inching ever so much closer.

She slowly slid the door open, casting an alluring glance over her shoulder.

"Wherever we feel like."

She took to the air.

* * *

An ethereal starry sky glittered as they danced atop the canopy. The light breeze rustled the branches as they skimmed the treetops, the leaves lightly tapping the tips of their toes.

Aria dove into the forest, spinning and laughing as she went. Trunks eagerly gave chase. He swept the bottom of the wood as he spiraled downward. As they sped through the forest together, a serene energy seemed to flow between them. Nothing else seemed to matter as they flew. Their minds, once frayed from the constant stress, remained still and calm. After a few minutes of peaceful flight, they touched down in a small clearing near a lake. The lake glistened in the setting moonlight, and the crickets chirped rhythmically across the water. They strolled on the bank together, letting the ripples lick at their freshly bare feet. Neither of them spoke for a time, content to walk in silence. The warmth Trunks had lost seemed to flow back into him as Aria looked into his eyes with a beguiling gaze. Aria had known him for a year now, but never had the time to let anything become of it. She found herself wanting to open up to him, to let go of her inhibitions and reveal everything. Without saying a word, she let her fingers intertwine with his. And they just stared.

So few times in their lives were they able to have the luxury to just look at something for exactly what it was. As they studied each other's faces, they both couldn't help but feel an intense sense of longing. For months they repressed their desires, absorbing their emotions in their training. Now that it was over, nothing held them back. A rush of adrenaline and lust seized them both as their lips locked in a powerful kiss. Aria ran her hands through his hair as he wrapped his arms around her waist and the small of her back. She sprung onto him, letting her legs entwine around his hips. They both fell backward onto the soft sand, swishing the grains back and forth with their movements. While Aria had indeed been with others, this one was different. Her avidity surpassed anything she'd felt for anyone before. She never felt so drawn, so inebriated. Trunks felt heavy with desire, letting himself embrace her with all of his strength. As they caressed, the sapphires on her dragon ring seemed to flash and glow in the dim light. Both of them found themselves raising their ki in their ardor, deepening their embrace and kissing with more fervor. Finally, they gave in, in a release of sheer power and passion. The forest greens grew gold as they erupted into a blaze of yellow and white, the energy whipping the sand and water around them. The Super Saiyans shook the ground when they rolled on the bank, leaving everything else behind.

Aria's eyes opened slowly. A sea of light green was before her, with the ambient sounds of birds chirping and soft waves tickling her ears. The morning sunlight glistened through the trees, creating a peaceful, airy glow. The sand swept at her cheek, and water lapped at her toes. A warm body with silken skin lay behind her, fitting snugly around hers. She smiled, and lightly brushed Trunks' hand. He shivered to the touch, and snuggled closer. Their bare torsos warmed one another, while their legs nestled cozily together.

She turned her body over, and draped her arms around his waist.

Everything was perfect.

After basking in the afterglow for a time, she nuzzled Trunks' nose to wake him.

"Trunks," she whispered.

He shifted slightly.

"Trunks."

His eyes flickered open. To his delight, he saw a beautiful face he'd longed for months to see in his arms.

"Hey," he murmured, grinning.

Aria rested her head against his chest.

"How is it, that by chance, two Saiyans somehow managed to find one another in this sprawling universe?"

Trunks lifted his head, putting a hand underneath to rest on.

"You think too much."

"Clearly," she smirked, planting another kiss on his supple lips.

They stood up and searched about for their scattered clothes. Once they dressed, they found a large boulder jutting out into the lake. They sat on the edge together, and began to converse.

Aria went into detail about her training, talking about how Vegeta influenced her style and reflexes. She talked about her solo sessions in the mountains, and the trials she faced. Opening up was something she always wanted to do, but never could. Even if Vegeta hadn't ordered her to keep the details of their endeavors clandestine, Aria would not have readily divulged them. The exercises were often silent, save Vegeta's instruction at the beginning and his rhetoric at the end of the lessons. When they sparred, little was exchanged besides grunts and primal screams on rare occasion. Yet, every session in the gravity chamber was a deeply personal exercise between the two. Each time Aria fought Vegeta, she learned more and more. He had a lot deeper motives than he let on.

In spite of himself, Trunks finally released his pent up angst surrounding his father, facing it head on. Aria comforted him, assuring him that his father cared. As she soothed him, she realized that he might never know how true that was. He continued on to his other life's passions, namely his love of nature. Aria envied his insight. She was able to take in the grace of the landscapes as a whole, but found difficulty in grasping the finer things. They were so different, yet their paths bordered the same line.

When they finished, Aria jumped into the lake, jetting through the water like a porpoise. She popped her head out and splashed Trunks playfully with the chilled water.

"Come in! It's fantastic!"

Aria always felt at home in the water. She glided through it with natural ease and comfort, as if she were born to exist there for eternity. Trunks leapt into the water in a cannon ball, creating a rushing tidal wave across the lake. In unison, they both dove under. They swam blissfully through the quiet amphitheater, reveling in the stunning beauty of the lake. Reeds whispered silently on either side of them, and small silver fish would occasionally rush by, sputtering past in groups of three or four. The morning sun trickled down through the water, glinting off the rocks as the ripples atop the lake moved and flowed. Soon, they ran out of air, they kicked towards the light.

When they broke the surface, everything changed.

They heard it before they saw it, and felt it before that. The light in the wood seemed to grow darker with its presence, making the colors and the flowers dim and wilt. A great and terrible power entered the atmosphere. They felt it to the tips of their fingers as it shot through their chests.

"That's not good," said Trunks solemnly.

"I—I think its…"

Aria gulped, refusing to say it.

"It is," Trunks growled. "We need to get back, I'm sure the others feel it too."

Suddenly, a whistling noise pierced the air. Aria and Trunks shot skyward from the lake, trying to find the source. They scanned the sky, when Aria spotted it.

"Look! There!"

She pointed to the southeast portion of the sky, where a bright jet of light was crashing toward earth. The object creating the light was a small, purple, V-shaped ship, hurdling at an unreal speed. A dark power emanated from it, pulsing as it fell.

"We've got to go!" Aria shouted through the noise.

"But he's heading right for South City!" Trunks protested.

"We can't do anything to save them now, let's go!"

They rocketed away from the light at top speed, rushing to get to Capsule Corp.


	14. Chapter 14: Destiny

"You feel that you guys?" said Krillin nervously.

Piccolo dug his nails into the meat of his arm as he clasped them across his chest.

"That power. I—can hardly describe it."

The Z fighters were gathered at Capsule on the lawn, after Piccolo picked up the signal early that morning. Aria and Trunks were noticeably absent.

"Where are those two?" Bulma growled. "The guy we've been training for this whole year shows up on our doorstep, and Trunks and that Aria are nowhere to be found!"

"Wherever they are, there's no way they'd miss a power level this massive. They should be back here any time now, unless they're stupid enough to go after him alone," said Piccolo.

Vegeta paced back and forth on the grass, mumbling curses to himself. He kicked at a rock, sending it flying.

"Bah! Why do we even bother? To think I spent a whole year on that insolent…"

He stopped as he felt two power levels coming from the west.

"Oh, now they decide to show!"

Aria and Trunks appeared on the horizon, speeding hastily toward the warriors.

They touched down when they reached the lawn.

"You all felt it then," said Aria, swiping her dampened hair behind her ears as she prepared to pull it up into a ponytail.

"It's about time!" Vegeta snarled. "Where have you two been, playing in the lake I suppose?"

Out of nowhere, Trunks stepped forward between them.

"That is none of your business," Trunks snapped.

That remark took both Vegeta and Aria by surprise. His eyes flashed dangerously.

"What was that, _boy_?"

Trunks growled; he detested the degrading term. Aria laid a hand on Trunks' shoulder.

"Now is not the time or the place," she said, her eyes darting between the father and son.

Vegeta glared at her, and then at his son. Something was off with both of them, but he couldn't quite place it.

Suddenly, a thundering boom shook the earth, causing everyone to gasp at once. The sky turned darker as a flash of light appeared over the cliffs in the southwest. Shockwaves radiated through the ground, causing the rocks on the nearby cliffs to crumble off the sides.

"Holy cow!" Krillin exclaimed, nearly dropping to his knees from the quake.

The waves continued for sometime before eventually subsiding. The dark power pulsed greater than ever.

Piccolo clenched his fists, his face turning into scowl.

"He hit South City!"

They all turned to Piccolo in shock.

"He's not even out of his ship yet and he's likely already killed thousands of innocent people!" he snarled.

Aria suddenly grew very calm. She was exercising a technique she acquired in her mental sessions to control her seething rage. The Saiyan chanted a mantra in her head, instantly soothing her surge of anger.

She turned to face the group, laden with stoicism.

"This will likely be the greatest warrior you will have ever faced," she said, "I need to know if you all can handle it."

Vegeta scoffed, but an odd trepidation gripped him as he searched the dark power level. It reminded him unnervingly of Frieza.

The others nodded, surprised by her placidity.

"Right," she nodded once in return, and gulped. "Let's go."

* * *

Aria, Piccolo and Trunks led the group, followed by Goku and Gohan. Goten and Krillin hung back, and Vegeta flew a few yards behind them. As they flew towards the crash site, they worked out their strategy.

"The power level is getting stronger and stronger as we approach. He's far too powerful for Goten, Krillin or myself to fight," said Piccolo, looking to Aria. "It looks like Jeiden's vision is going to come true after all."

Aria gazed fixedly ahead, hardly listening. Trunks' lips tightened into a thin line as he saw the anger etched across her face.

"Should we even bother fighting one on one? Why not come down hard in a group?"

"We can't risk that," Piccolo warned, "This guy is not one to be trifled with. He'll likely take that opportunity to kill us off quicker, using shock and confusion as weapons against us. But we can't allow him to fully separate us either."

Aria's somber expression twisted into a grimace.

"I will fight him alone," she snapped, "I refuse to put anyone's lives at risk when I'm the one he's looking for. If by some twist of fate he manages to get past me…"

She paused.

"No, he won't get past me."

No one spoke to challenge her.

"Goku, do you have the Sensu Beans?" asked Piccolo.

Goku nodded, pulling out a small, leather pouch from his pocket.

Aria's brow furrowed. She'd learned about the restorative powers of the Sensu bean in her training with Vegeta. Today, she hoped that they wouldn't have to use them.

"We're almost there," said Gohan.

They glided over the tops of the mountains, and wheeled down the side to the valley.

"Ah!" he gasped.

A gigantic crater three hundred meters wide gaped in front of them. The debris from South City sprawled miles away from the crater's impact. Where there were once tall buildings, only rubble remained. Dust and smoke from the fires created an eerie fog around the wreckage. As they got closer, they could only stare in horror as they saw the full extent of the chaos. Shattered glass littered the streets; cars had been blown into tenth story windows, and bodies were mangled and strewn across the pavement. Teams of surviving fireman were already attempting to put out the flames engulfing buildings around the city. Even Vegeta was awestruck by the destruction. He himself had created harrowing scenes like this one before. But as he took in the barbarity inflicted on these people, his guilt tugged at him like a rabid dog.

"This—is too much," Krillin sputtered, squeezing his eyes shut as he turned his head away.

Aria fought back the tears behind her eyes. That demon had annihilated this city, and there was nothing she could have done to stop it. Vengeance surged through her as she thought of all of the lives that were taken by this monstrosity, along with the lives of her parents.

"You will pay for this," she spat.

In the center of the crater sat the V shaped invader, stuck into the ground like a spear.

They touched down on the lip of the depression, scowling at the metallic ship in the middle.

As if on cue, a hissing sound came from the ship. Steam whistled through the cracks in the angular door as the hydraulics lowered it to the ground. A shadow appeared in the entrance, backed by a dim, red glow. Thin, blue, humanoid appendages emerged, wrapping around the edges of the doorway. The creature stepped into the light, revealing itself.

"Marcus," Aria murmured.

Pure evil chilled the air as the Galaton stepped out of his ship. The nostril slits in the middle of his face flared as he caught smell of burning buildings and charred rubble. As he breathed in the havoc and stretched his limbs after the long journey, he noticed a peculiar scent in the air. It was so familiar. His fin-like ears twitched a bit as he picked up a pack of strong energy signals, just to his left.

Aria shuddered when she saw him.

He was tall, close to seven feet in height. His limbs appeared longer than on the feed, and sharper. Gold protrusions, almost like football pads, lined his shoulders and elbows, and thick metal cuffs fit on his wrists. Two demonic onyx eyes marked his smooth face, and sharp teeth peeked out from under his venomous smirk. The creature scanned the area, and saw the shapes on the edge above. Five had enormous power levels, while the other three were considerably lacking. The scent grew stronger as he sniffed in their direction. Without a thought, he began to levitate towards them.

"He's coming up!" Aria shouted, and dropped into a battle stance.

Marcus' ears pricked up as he heard the voice.

_A female._

As he came closer, he was able to distinguish her features. His lips twisted into a roguish smile. The screeching cackle cut through the valley, making the Z fighters wince. Marcus shot toward the edge, and stopped not five feet in front of Aria. His long tail twitched as he touched the ground.

"Well, well, well. It looks like I've found you at last."

Aria scowled in disgust. She remembered how hideous he looked on the tape, but he seemed considerably more revolting in person. Marcus chuckled wickedly.

"I've been searching the whole galaxy for the last seventeen years. Permit me, if you will, to have a good look at you and your little group."

The warriors felt an odd prickle on their scalps as he surveyed them. He gave Aria a onceover, slightly bemused.

"Yes, yes, you're exactly as I pictured… You've grown to be quite the warrior I see."

"Piss off," she spat.

"Now, now, is that a way to treat the merciful Emperor who spared your life all those years ago?"

"Perhaps not. But I can't say the same for the rest of the lives you've destroyed."

"How quaint, the Saiyan's got a sense of justice. And what of you, then? The Saiyans wreaked as much havoc as I have over the years. Isn't that right, Vegeta?"

Vegeta's eyes widened, along with everyone else's.

"How do you know my name?" he demanded.

"I know quite a bit about you. Your mind is an open book, and a very interesting one at that."

Vegeta snarled.

"Vermin!"

"So you are the Prince of all Saiyans," he cocked his head as he looked at Vegeta, "What a delightful occasion this is! My destined opponent and her race's prince, all in one day."

"Your delight is about to end, cretin!"

Vegeta shot forward, only to be stopped by Aria's outstretched arm.

"This is my fight," she said icily. "Don't interfere."

"How dare you! Out of my way!"

Aria ignored him.

"Lets take this to more suitable terrain," she said to Marcus, rather coldly.

"Do lets," he replied. "Will your little friends be joining us?"

Aria looked at the sky, visualizing her parents in front of her. Her Saiyan pride refused to falter now. She sighed, her eyes darting to the warriors beside her.

"No, they will not."

"Speak for yourself!" Vegeta retorted.

"What are you doing?" Piccolo exclaimed, "Your father predicted that you would fight him _together_. This creature wants to separate you!"

Marcus pulled a hand to his chest in mock surprise.

"I beg to differ! I would love to have him tag along, but it seems Katal is content to fight by herself."

Aria looked towards the mountains. She knew every rock and crevice in those hills from her independent sessions. It would give her an advantage, however small, for their fight.

While Marcus hadn't actually breached her mental barriers, he did notice her magnetism to the hills behind them.

"You are fond of those mountains," he mused, "Let that be our stage then."

She nodded curtly.

"Feel free to pick out a place. I'll be along shortly."

Marcus sniggered.

"I'll leave you to it then. I suppose I can wait just a bit longer."

He jetted off toward the mountains, cackling as he went.

As soon as he was out of earshot, Vegeta glared at Aria.

"You're mad if you think I will be subdued by my own pupil!

She turned to face him, her pride filling her chest.

"I have to face him alone," she said.

Trunks stepped toward her and clutched her hand in his. Vegeta's eyes narrowed at the gesture.

"No, you don't. A lot of things have changed, this can be one of them," Trunks murmured.

She looked up into his familiar periwinkle eyes.

"I need to avenge my parents, Trunks," she said softly, "I will defeat him myself. You must understand."

Vegeta averted his eyes downward. He knew what it felt like to lose everything to a monster.

"Have it your way. But if and when you fail, you'll have no sympathy from me."

She smirked. That was the closest she'd ever get to a word of encouragement from Vegeta.

Trunks sighed in resignation, and pulled her close into a warm embrace.

"Then be careful."

She rested her head on his shoulder.

"I will."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow.

Aria pulled away, and said her goodbyes to the other Z fighters.

"If your power level drops, we're coming in," said Piccolo.

Aria nodded.

One last time, she looked at Vegeta. They exchanged a rather familiar two-fingered wave.

With that, she rocketed into the air towards the mountains.

_I'm coming now, Marcus. There's nothing holding me back._

She extended her senses, cleared her mind and prepared for battle. She felt everything around her. Everything, that is, save for two small, suppressed power levels speeding on the ground behind her.


	15. Chapter 15: Demons

Marcus' power was close now, pulsating with evil energy. Aria weaved in between the mountains on her final approach, descending into the canyons. Wispy clouds lined the rugged peaks, cascading down into the valleys below. It was rather chilly, with the dew lining the needles of the pine trees on the hillsides. The thrill of battle beat in her chest when she locked on to Marcus' location.

Marcus was situated on a rock atop the very same plateau where the Z fighters had their tournament one year ago. A crescent remained on the edge where Piccolo had crashed through the rock, and small indents littered the surface from their fights. She landed firmly on the plateau.

Marcus smirked from his perch on the rock.

"I was beginning to grow impatient. I almost thought you wouldn't show."

Aria folded her arms, and cocked her hip to one side.

"Good things come to those who wait," she said bitterly.

"Indeed."

He hopped down from the rock, cracking his neck from side to side. The two warriors began to pace in a circle, watching one another carefully.

"I've been looking a long time for you, Katal," he grinned as he spoke. "I'm curious though—How did you know who I was when I landed here?"

"A little bird told me," she said sarcastically.

He chuckled.

"Ah, you figured out the chip, eh? I'm impressed. So I gather you've met your parents. What a tragedy…"

She stopped in her tracks, and faced him head on.

"You'll pay for what you've done, Marcus," she snarled.

"I highly doubt it," he scoffed, "Your power is no match for me. To think I spared your life for a challenge, only to be met with little more than enough for a warm up exercise. How disappointing."

Aria watched cautiously as Marcus' tail swayed behind him, the sharp point glinting in the afternoon light.

"You are blinded by arrogance."

"Perhaps, but it soon will not matter when your head is embedded in the rock at my feet."

Aria scowled and bared her teeth.

"See if you can manage it!" she roared. She shot forward, ready to deliver a powerful punch directly to his head. Marcus slid out of the way as she careered toward him, arms folded leisurely across his chest. She retaliated with quick jabs toward his head, only to have them miss as he effortlessly weaved between them.

Unbeknownst to them, two figures situated themselves on top of a cliff above the plateau. They kept clandestine behind a protruding rock face, watching the unfolding battle below.

"That foolish girl. Her emotions got in the way before they even started!" Vegeta grumbled.

Trunks rolled his eyes. Vegeta frequently pulled that same move at the start of his matches, only to be met with the same result.

"Have a bit of faith, he hasn't even attacked yet."

"That's precisely my point. He doesn't have to. Christ, you're just as boneheaded as she is. Is the only reason you tagged along to ogle at your girlfriend?"

Trunks' eyes flashed, but he reluctantly remained silent.

Aria continued crisscrossing kicks to his sides, only to have them easily blocked.

_This is pointless! _She scolded to herself. _Your anger is getting to you. Get a grip!_

She hung back, ceasing her assault.

Marcus brushed some dust off of his arms.

"I grow weary of this. This cannot possibly be the best you can do."

Aria closed her eyes expelled her breath to calm herself down. With a quick burst, she spiked her ki.

"Now that's more like it!" he said boisterously, clapping his hands together.

Aria's newly turquoise eyes snapped open. Her gaze was sharpened and focused as she raced toward Marcus. The Super Saiyan rained blows down on Marcus, considerably harder than before. He shot back with a series of quick punches, which she dodged with exceptional dexterity.

They dotted about the mountainside, disappearing and reappearing in short bursts. The noise from the impacts sounded throughout the pass as their blows eventually began to connect. Marcus dealt the first, careening Aria into the nearby cliff side.

She recovered quickly, and retaliated with a kick to his gut, sending him flying skyward.

"Look at her go!" said Trunks excitedly.

Vegeta remained dispassionate, fixated on her form and technique.

_She's getting calmer, _he mused to himself. _Her movements are much more precise. But something is definitely off about this fight. I can feel it._

Marcus flipped himself upright, blood trickling from the devilish grin on his face. Aria flew up to meet him.

"It's been so long since anyone has landed a single blow on me," said Marcus, "You truly are remarkable."

Aria spat a bit of bloodstained saliva to the side.

"Save your breath."

He chuckled.

"How uncouth. I think your attitude could use an adjustment."

Marcus' tail flicked back and forth. Vegeta's eyes followed it nervously. He saw it tense up, ready to strike.

"The tail, girl! The tail!" he said sharply, repressing his urge to yell.

Just then, his tail whipped forward, missing her by a hair as she sprung away. It cut through the air in rapid succession, trying to land a prick on her. Aria knew that she couldn't ready her Incizor in time to remove it in hand to hand combat, so she decided to take her chances and make a break for it.

Before she got even a meter into the air, Marcus latched onto her ankle, slamming her into the plateau. She tried to shoot forward, but Marcus planted his foot firmly on her back.

"No!" Trunks shouted, before he could stop himself.

Marcus' ears pricked up. Aria's heart dropped into her stomach.

Vegeta wrenched Trunks backward by his arm.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he growled. "You'll only make the situation worse if you give away our position!"

Trunks fought back against his father's grip.

"This is why we came here, isn't it? To intervene when she needs help!"

"And that time is not now," Vegeta replied firmly.

Marcus eyes shifted to the cliffs where Vegeta and Trunks were sequestered. Aria struggled beneath him, unable to break free.

Vegeta's eyes darted to the field.

"Look here, _boy_," he hissed, "This could cost _all _of us dearly if you keep this up. Don't be a fool!"

Trunks stepped forward, his face inches from Vegeta's. He used his free hand to grasp Vegeta's collar, anger burning in his eyes.

"How dare you," Vegeta murmured.

"How dare I what? Stand up for myself for once in my life?" Trunks' voice grew louder.

Marcus bristled with excitement as he heard the commotion.

Aria began to panic, frantically trying to figure out a way to distract him.

She straightened her arms out to the sides. She flattened her palms and fingers, tucking in her thumbs.

"INCIZOR!" she roared, conjuring a sharp blade of light from her fingertips. Marcus snapped his head back to Aria, gasping in astonishment. She reached back with her left arm to slice his leg, but missed as he leapt out of the way.

Once she vaulted upright, she began to slash wildly. Marcus barely evaded the impending beams, receiving shallow cuts about his body.

"Let go of me at once," Vegeta snarled. "She's already back up on her feet!"

"I'm aware. But this isn't just about her anymore."

"What in the world is _that_ supposed to mean? Unhand me!"

Trunks obeyed, releasing his vice grip on his father's shirt.

"Tell me something," he said roughly, "Why did you train her?"

Vegeta blinked in surprise.

"That is none of your concern."

"It is completely of my concern."

Vegeta shook his head, bewildered.

"You're talking nonsense."

"Not as much as you think."

"Enlighten me then!"

Trunks' eyes widened for a split second, than narrowed into a grimace.

"Strange, Aria replied the same way."

"Boy, I have had it with your games. If there's something you want to say to me, say it!"

"You trained her without even _knowing her,"_ Trunks bellowed, causing Vegeta to panic. "It's like she earned your respect without even trying!"

"I said _say it_, not _scream it to the heavens,_" Vegeta said, exasperated. He glared at the fighters below.

Marcus heard the ruckus over the whiz of the beams and Aria's forceful yells. He found an opening and rocketed a swift kick, sending her crashing into the ground.

"It seems we have company!" Marcus roared. He lifted an arm and summoned a powerful ki blast in his hand.

Aria leapt up.

"GET OUT OF THERE!"

Trunks and Vegeta split off in separate directions as Marcus' blast shattered the mountainside, disintegrating everything in its path in a blinding flash of magenta.

"That was foul play, Marcus!" Aria spat, as pieces of rock fell to the ground around the disfigured cliff side.

Marcus craned his neck around.

"You brought along unwanted guests. It is you who is at fault here."

"I had no knowledge of them following me, and they did not inhibit our fight. It was a dirty stunt!"

Marcus turned his head back to the obliterated mountainside, reveling in his feat.

"Spare me."

Aria tightened her fists to the point that her knuckles blanched white. She powered up, and stretched out her arm into a dragon-like pose. A blue cannon fired out of her palm and streaked towards Marcus.

The blast exploded violently, shaking the entire mountain range. Aria squinted her eyes against the glare. Rocks and debris scattered from the epicenter, crashing into the surrounding mountains. The enormous sound reverberated throughout the pass. Trunks and Vegeta shielded their faces as small, sharp rocks assaulted them. The glare gradually began to subside, revealing a billowing cloud of dust and smoke. Aria was panting heavily now, arm still outstretched from her release. She strained to see through the smoke. Then, she gasped and reeled backward.

Marcus' long, shadowed frame crept through the wisps. It stood straight and ruthless as ever, unscathed by the massive eruption. The smoke cleared to reveal little more than scuff marks on the smooth skin of his back.

He spoke without turning around.

"Now that was a dirty stunt."

She shrank back, unable to utter a sound from her gaping mouth. Trunks and Vegeta could only watch in shock.

Marcus slowly rotated around, a new diabolical look in his eye. He scrutinized the Saiyan, searching her for something.

She suddenly felt the prickle on the back of her scalp.

"You monster," she breathed.

Marcus cracked a fiendish smile.

"You're mine."

She dropped to her knees. A sharp pain pierced through Aria's skull as she lost consciousness of the outside world.

* * *

Everything faded to black around her. Aria tore at her head, trying desperately to expel him. Her mental barriers had failed. No matter what she tried, he steadfastly filled her mind. She had never fought with another being inside her head, so she had no way of knowing how to block him out. Marcus' energy seeped into her, curling itself around her thoughts and memories.

"_Interesting," _his voice echoed everywhere.

Spears of dark blue and violet surged around Aria in the blackness, attacking her inner cortex. Aria couldn't think any longer. Marcus was interrupting her neural impulses. Pure instinct kicked in, causing her to thrash about. She sent ki blasts flying every which way, praying for a miracle. Just then, a sharp gasp reverberated in the chasm of her head. The spears subsided, and she felt his energy retract. Her thoughts became clearer, and were once again her own. Aria exploded with a torrent of power, pushing the rest of Marcus out of her head. The blackness lit up into an aura of white, with glowing streams of light yellow and blue. The mountainous landscape blurred into view as her vision returned.

She heard Vegeta's voice in the distance. _"You fool!"_

Two figures danced in a flurry of light and motion in front of her. To her dismay, they soon became clear. A Super Saiyan Trunks was assaulting Marcus, swinging at him with powerful ki fists and kicks.

"Trunks, no!" she screamed, launching herself to her feet.

Marcus lips twisted into a malevolent smirk as he clamped on to Trunks' next two jabs with his hands.

"How convenient," he sneered.

Aria and Vegeta could only watch in horror as his tail whipped forward, stabbing Trunks in the stomach.


	16. Chapter 16: Unforeseen Circumstances

Blood and venom trickled down Trunks' front as Marcus twisted the point of the tail into his flesh. Trunks' mouth was open but emitted nothing, save the sharp exhales of pain.

The neurotoxin seeped into the fibers of his muscles, locking them in place. His heart began to beat hard in his chest, and his fingers and eyelids were twitching sporadically as his nervous system began to fail. The wind in the mountain pass was the only sound as Trunks slowly fell backward, landing with a thud on the plateau.

"Little pest," Marcus muttered.

As Aria saw his body hit the ground, time was nonexistent. She was frozen stiff, save the light tremors of her tensed muscles. Horrible pangs of rage licked at her consciousness, and a fire began to grow in the pit of her stomach.

Trunks' golden hair and aura subsided as his energy began to drop instantly.

And then, something snapped. A dark energy enveloped the area, one that wasn't coming from Marcus.

Aria spoke with a voice that could freeze fire.

"Vegeta."

Vegeta's face was stone, and his body motionless. He wanted to tear Marcus in two, and disintegrate what was left in a burning inferno fit for only the dastardliest of monsters.

The agony that gripped him echoed that day twenty years ago, when Cell the same being he allowed to achieve Perfect Form, cut down his future son for nothing but sport. How he wished he had stayed at his son's side, instead of frivolously attacking something he knew to be too powerful. Perhaps his misgivings were still to be resolved. Vegeta walked towards where Trunks lay gasping for breath, and glared at Marcus.

Marcus took one last look at the boy, and shrugged his shoulders, motioning Vegeta to take him.

"I am finished," he said flatly.

Vegeta scooped Trunks up in his arms.

"Rest assured, I will be back. And if Katal hasn't succeeded in erasing you from existence, I will disintegrate you myself."

He looked back at Aria, who shook violently.

"Kill this wretched beast," he spat.

He charged into the air, soaring back towards the other warriors just over the hills. Nothing else mattered, except the boy in his arms.

Marcus' eyes flashed suspiciously.

"Yes, you'll be back alright," he murmured.

Aria clenched her jaw, raw power surging within her.

Marcus turned to face her.

"Yes, I sense your rage. I feel it rising inside of you. Let it out! I yearn to test my power!"

As her power grew, she remembered one of her sessions with Vegeta as it flashed back in her head.

She heard his voice.

"_Another of our kind has the same tendencies as you do. He taps into his rage and sense of justice to access untold power. You know him as the innocent child of Kakarot, but trust me when I say that he is just as strong as his father if he wants to be. Gohan is kind. He doesn't have the heart of a warrior. But he has a vast expanse of energy at his disposal, waiting to be let out when he needs it most. He uses the anger from the loss of his loved ones to become a warrior more powerful than any of us. You will need to learn to do the same. The power you exuded that day is inside of you, always. Now, you just need to control it."_

In that moment, she held back nothing. Her power swelled and burst forth like nothing Marcus had ever seen. The aura of gold enveloped them both, and her hair stood up on end. Suddenly, it began to grow longer. Her eyebrows disappeared, and her muscles bulged with new power. Lightning seemed to fly around her as she screamed.

She was transforming into something greater than even she could have imagined.

Marcus reeled backward, bewildered by her strength. Just moments ago he could have snapped her in two, and now she was quickly eclipsing him. He growled and began to pump his own power. Dark waves and magenta sparks radiated from his frame to combat the glow, and his energy increased substantially with every passing moment. None of this mattered to Aria. Her energy continued to grow, coursing through every vein, electrifying every muscle fiber. Pure Saiyan wrath filled her as she looked upon Marcus, seeing the vision of Trunks collapsing at his hand.

* * *

"The ki coming from over there is enormous, from both of them!" said Gohan.

The others indeed felt the waves of power, and saw the massive glow in the distance.

Piccolo grimaced. Trunks' power level just took a nosedive.

The warriors were sensing the direction of the battle from afar, using the ki levels as indicators. Undulations in their power were excellent sources of determining who had the advantage. Just then, they noticed a concentration closing in on them. Their gazes focused skyward.

"It's Vegeta!" Goku exclaimed.

Vegeta approached the warriors swiftly, gently cradling his dying son in his arms. The group gasped.

"What…happened?" Krillin sputtered as Vegeta touched down into the remains of South City.

Vegeta ignored him. Trunks was shaking, still paralyzed by the neurotoxin.

"Kakarot! Get me a Sensu bean!"

Goku reached into his shirt for the pouch, but only felt bare skin when he laid his fingers on his chest.

"What?"

He frantically tore at his shirt.

Vegeta glared at him.

"Don't you dare play games with me! This is my son's life you're gambling with!"

"I'm not playing games, I can't find them."

"I saw you with them the second we got here, you could not possibly have lost them!"

Goku ripped his shirt off, shaking it wildly. A puff of dust fizzled out of the bottom, but nothing more.

"I know that! I honestly have no clue what's going on!"

The gears in Piccolo's head began to turn. He recalled the chain of odd events in the ki, especially the small quip of dark energy right near where Goku was standing that he decidedly cast off as nothing.

* * *

Marcus and Aria were now nearly even in strength. Small rocks and dirt whizzed around the two, and sparks danced between them. In her new state, Aria was extraordinarily placid. The anger seemed to vanish, metamorphosed into her energy. She was focused and calm, aware of everything around her. Training with Vegeta had extended her senses her normal form, but this was a whole new type of sensory perception. When she closed her eyes, she could feel the smallest of wind currents, creating a perfect picture of her surroundings in her head. Her range of sensing ki was amplified, letting her seek out the smallest traces of ki in the mountain pass.

Then there was her power. It filled her to the brim, almost bursting from her bulging muscles. She's never felt anything like it. It was as if she could destroy the planet with a flick of her finger. Her transformation had completed, and her viridescent eyes snapped open. Utter exhilaration pervaded her lungs as she took her first breath as a Super Saiyan 3.

Marcus' transformation, while not primarily physical in nature, was just as pivotal. A deep fuchsia glow emanated atop his skin like a ghostly veil, swirling with malevolent energy. The air blackened around him, becoming toxic with his presence. The gold protrusions on his elbows and shoulders seemed to swell, distending out slightly from his limbs. His black eyes could have swallowed galaxies in their vast expanse of empty malice, and the crest on his head seemed to sharpen and become taller. He contracted his mitten-like appendages into fists, and loosened them again. Though he had been in this state before, he was not accustomed to fighting at near maximum power. He had yet to reach Suscitatis' limit.

Aria abruptly felt Trunks' ki slipping away.

"Shall we proceed?" she said, with a dour expression.

Marcus smirked, discreetly patting the bulge in his left pocket.

"Gladly."

* * *

Vegeta slammed his fist on the grass.

"What the hell do you mean Marcus has them? How could he?"

"Marcus likely has abilities beyond our comprehension," Piccolo replied, "And the dark ki I sensed came right from where Goku was standing."

"Telekinetic transportation…This is unbelievable," Vegeta growled, looking down grimly at his son.

"So what do we do? He's dying," said Gohan, almost pleading.

Piccolo put a hand on his chin in thought.

"I know this wasn't the plan, but I see no other alternative," he brooded. "Goku, you can use your instant transmission to get to the battle and get those beans back. If you can't beat him, at least distract him long enough to retrieve them and get back here."

Goku agreed. Vegeta stood up.

"I'm coming as well. I have a score to settle with this demon."

Piccolo shot him a jaundiced glare.

"For God's sake Vegeta…Your son needs his father now."

Trunks shivered, the veins around the wound turning dark with the venom. He clenched his teeth in agony.

Vegeta stared in disquiet, and faced Goku.

"Kakarot, if you fail..."

Goku cracked a grin.

"I won't."

He pressed two fingers to his forehead, and disappeared.

* * *

Aria's arms were like machine gun fire as she assailed her opponent. Marcus had to block her bullets each and every time with his hands and arms, as she was too quick for him to dodge. He quickly turned the tables by lashing out with his tail once more, and developed the offensive advantage as he attacked with all five appendages. Aria found it more and more difficult to avoid his strikes; her strength was taking its toll. Marcus hit the side of her body with a dexterous kick. She grunted, and threw an angry punch that landed squarely in the middle of Marcus' face. The Galaton reeled backward, growling in irritation at the pain coming from between his eyes. After a quick recovery, he launched forward, and was about to ram Aria full force.

Just then, they stopped, sensing an abrupt change in ki. Out of nowhere, Goku was suddenly standing beside them.

"What? How did you—" Aria began. She refrained when she saw the somber look on his face. Goku gave Marcus a stony glare.

"I believe you have something of ours," he said coldly.

Marcus smirked, and returned to a relaxed, standing position.

He reached into his left pocket. Aria's brow furrowed. Goku tilted his head toward Marcus, who produced the small, leather pouch.

Before Aria could summon a thought, she was in front of Marcus, her arm shooting forward for the bag. Marcus rapidly pulled it away with a grin, and moved backward.

"What is this treachery, cretin?" she snarled.

The Galaton cackled, waving the pouch back and forth.

"It makes things a little more interesting."

"I will blast a hole through your head if you don't give them to me!"

"You can try."

Goku powered up, changing into a Super Saiyan.

"Give up, Marcus. You're outnumbered."

Marcus' eyes widened.

_Another one? Perhaps I've miscalculated._

"No matter," he said smoothly, "If you want them, come and get them."

Goku met Aria's gaze, and they nodded to one another. They attacked Marcus simultaneously, fighting for the pouch in their enemy's hand.

* * *

Vegeta put a hand on his son's forehead. It was scorching to the touch. Piccolo tore off a section of his cape, wet it under a broken water pipe, and placed it on Trunks' brow.

Trunks was quivering on the grass, his breathing becoming shallow.

Suddenly, a pang hit Vegeta. _What if he doesn't make it?_

He glanced at Piccolo, who nodded and departed the area, leaving the two Saiyans alone.

A tension had always arisen between Vegeta and his son whenever they interacted. Vegeta sloughed it off as triviality. But in the last year, he noticed that they grew further and further apart. In fact, they barely spoke to one another. He remembered dodging the probing questions Bulma faced him with, indifferent to her pleas, and Trunks' stoicism. He cursed himself. How could a father be so callous and blind?

Vegeta lowered his head. If there was a time to bury past grievances, it was now. He sighed and turned to the boy in his arms.

"You wanted to know why I trained Katal."

Trunks' eyes fluttered open. His vision was blurred, but he could distinctly make out his father's voice.

"Now's as good a time as any," he choked, a bit surprised by Vegeta's words.

Vegeta closed his eyes and began.

"You say she earned my respect after our spar in the gravity chamber."

He paused, shifting uncomfortably.

"And that is true."

Trunks coughed violently, tensing from pain in more ways than one.

"She fought me willingly at 300g, with no prior training, yet she managed to land a punch on me. That was our wager, and I never go back on my word."

He averted his eyes.

"She is a pure blooded Saiyan, the child of a very respected member of my race. It's something that you may never fully comprehend."

Vegeta looked into Trunks' eyes, and for once, Trunks felt warmth.

"There's something you must understand," Vegeta murmured.

Tears started to well up in his eyes. He snapped them shut, and his shoulders began to tremble.

"My son," he whispered, "There's no one in heaven or on earth that could attain the reverence I have for you. I could not ask for more than you have given me."

Trunks was gob smacked. Vegeta did not feel sadness, remorse, and much less love. He often wondered if his father even had feelings at times.

A relieved smile crept onto Trunks' face. _At last._

His eyes began to close.

"WHERE THE HELL IS KAKAROT?" Vegeta bellowed, clutching his son in a tight embrace.


	17. Chapter 17: The Jaws of Defeat

Goku slammed into the mountainside.

Aria came up behind Marcus and attempted to grab him, only to fall through a holographic shadow. She looked around frantically, seeing only the hills and the plateau below. Marcus appeared behind her, clasping his hands together above his head for a fatal strike. Goku shook off the dirt as he rocketed out of the hole in the cliff, careening into Marcus. He kicked Goku into the air, and summoned a red orb in his right palm.

"_Brevignis!_" he shrieked, blasting a ball of light toward Goku. Goku weaved out of the way just in time, bounding off of an opposing cliff. He suddenly noticed the drop in Trunks' energy signal.

"Aria, Trunks' power level's almost gone!" he cried.

Aria began to panic; her energy was fading fast too. Marcus seemed unstoppable, even though they were still dead even in strength. Even with Goku's help, she still couldn't beat him. Marcus was beginning to wear, but not nearly as much as she'd hoped.

With a swift motion, she readied an at-range Incizor beam, and tossed it at Marcus. He slid out of the way of the scythe, watching it slice through the cliff like it was butter. Nothing she did seemed to work. Every time she attacked, he would block, dodge, or endure the brunt of the hit and retaliate. But she had to retrieve those beans.

Marcus grimaced and dove into the canyons below. These Saiyans were becoming much more of a problem than he anticipated. He looked disgustedly at the pouch in his hand, and tied it onto his belt. It would take more than his waning strength to get him to stoop to the level of his adversaries.

Aria whizzed after him. The ravine ended in a fork, so it was plausible that he could split off in either direction. This game was becoming an unending one.

She began to feel very heavy, and began to hyperventilate as she flew. Marcus noticed the change in energy, as it began to slowly decrease.

_Just as I predicted, _he thought, smirking. _The girl has tremendous strength, but cannot sustain it._

Marcus stopped midway through the ravine, and wheeled around. There was no need for him to run anymore.

Aria smashed into him, and they locked into a burst of blows and energy blasts. Goku was on the sidelines, ready to pounce if needed, but a gripping feeling stopped him. He didn't know what it was, or why he didn't intervene. But something told him not to.

Aria was growing faint as she attempted to keep exerting herself at this level. Her strikes grew slower and weaker by the second.

Marcus had enough. It was time to end this.

In her haze, she hardly felt the fist connect with her face, nor did she notice the crushing rocks behind her as she was hammered into the ground. She drifted in and out of consciousness, masking the pain from the subsequent blows. Goku's energy spiked as he watched in horror. He desperately wanted to step in, but something paralyzed him to the spot.

Saiyan pride is something not to be trifled with. He learned this the hard way, by trying to fight alongside a certain Saiyan Prince on a number of occasions. The aid was only taken as a spur to the hindquarters, creating a less than congenial situation for everyone involved. Of course, none of this was Goku's fault. He only wanted to help. But pride has a way of blinding the wearer, and if someone offers help, it only makes it worse. He knew that she had to do it alone.

The Galaton latched onto her leg and threw her back out into the open.

What he saw perplexed him. Aria was no longer moving to attack him. She stood perfectly still, her face blank. Then, she descended to the canyon floor below. Marcus curled his lip. Hesitantly, he followed, touching down on the rocky plane.

"Give up?" he sneered.

Aria wouldn't look up. She was completely depleted, void of any strength to challenge him. Goku's eyes bulged as Aria sharply decreased her ki. Her hair returned to black, and her eyes were sapphire and clear once again. A mixture of sweat and blood dripped from her brow, and dust coated her skin. Tears welled up in her eyes as she disdainfully opened her mouth.

"Yes."

For a minute, Marcus couldn't make a sound, too shocked to speak. He knew that he was winning, but even he didn't think she would quit.

"I'm sorry," she choked. "Goku, Vegeta…" Her hands balled into fists, the nails digging into her palms. "Trunks…"

She dropped to her knees, shaking uncontrollably with her sobs.

"I've failed…"

The wind whipped up the dust on the slabs of rock, tousling and tangling Aria's hair. Everything she had worked for was for nothing. Trunks would be dead, and it would be her fault. The monster in front of her took everyone and everything she loved away, and she could do absolutely nothing to stop it. She tried everything she could think of, and it still wasn't enough.

For close to two decades Marcus had awaited this moment. His finest adversary was kneeling at his feet, broken and defeated. The shrill laugh sounded through the pass, echoing off of the cliffs around them. He raised his hands up to chest level, grasping at the air in a motion of victory.

His laughter subsided, as did the wind around them.

"So," he said finally, "This is how it ends."

Aria fought back hard against a wail catching in her throat, making sharp guttural noises. Everything was in vain…

"I must say," Marcus rolled his neck, and advanced on Aria, "You put up a very good fight."

He stopped a few feet in front of her, looking down at his opponent with a sense of both relief and disgust. He cocked back, and folded his arms.

"Do you know why I spent twenty years trying to find you?"

She didn't respond, but gazed up at her addressor.

"I could have easily destroyed you on Tetsau, along with your miserable parents. But I didn't. Normally I would have, without hesitation. But I had seen the wonders in your father's head. The promise of a challenge like that was far too intriguing for me to pass up. A legendary being of the Saiyan race fighting for her life alongside the Saiyan Prince…Hm, I guess not every vision comes true."

He began to pace around her in a circle.

"Right now, however, is the only time have I ever experienced this—this, being a powerful adversary almost presenting a challenge. I mean really, you could have potentially bested me. Not many beings in the universe could say that. I almost feel sorry for you now. You falling to your knees—what a blow to your ego that must be! You would think it'd be to my chagrin, but far from it! I love watching a being toil in their own agony, knowing innately that they are finished. What I can't seem to wrap my brain around is: how could a power like you be so inherently…what's the word…flawed? Your technique was nearly perfect, and your battle style, up until our little interruption, was so superb. Yet you, so powerful, fell prey to petty distraction and attachment. I suppose even the being of legend has a soft spot, especially a _romantic_ one.

"Love is something that I could never understand. It's pointless, really; two beings engaging in a little hoity dance of gibberish and hormonal riff raff. How exciting could that be? I have the fortunate distinction of being incapable of such things. Power is my only goal—aside from finding some engaging entertainment such as this."

He cracked his knuckles.

"Katal my dear, it has been fun. But I am afraid I have had enough of these games."

He slowly raised a hand, and placed it directly above Aria's face. Which now stared blankly into his sable eyes.

"Saiyan pride…" he scoffed. "Mere myth."

Goku readied himself. Her pride would have to deal with the intrusion.

Just then, Aria's voice sounded in Goku's head.

_Follow my lead._

His eyes darted about, searching for the source of the sound. _Could she really have…?_

"Wait," she said softly.

Marcus tilted his head.

"Last words, then?"

She shook her head.

"I have one final request."

Marcus guffawed at the idea. Even for a Saiyan, this was too droll.

"Alright, humor me."

She had a glitter in her eyes as she said it.

"I want to bask in the sun one last time."

Marcus snorted. Of all the things…

"An odd request," he said, "But I digress. It's not as if you could escape me, and you did manage to actually land a punch or two… So I suppose that garners you enough respect for last requests. Whatever, go."

A warning flash entered his eyes.

"But you will not keep me waiting for long."

Aria rose to her feet.

"No, I won't."

_Goku, power down, suppress your energy level. _The voice echoed again.

Goku obeyed, scratching his head. His hair returned to its usual spiky, black mess, and his ki dropped to near zero.

"What is she up to?" he muttered.

* * *

The Z warriors felt a sinking feeling in the pits of their stomachs. It was over.

Aria's power level had suddenly disappeared, and Goku's had followed soon after.

Vegeta could barely feel his son's energy in his arms. Trunks was almost gone, all because of that demonic wretch. Kakarot…Katal… lost. Soon the rest of them would follow. He couldn't take it. If anyone would have survived a fight with Marcus, it would have been those two. No one else on this planet had the strength to challenge that barbarian.

Except for him.

He laid his son on the dirt, grasping his hand.

"I hope you'll forgive me for this one day."

He rose, and looked around at the other fighters, a resolute firmness in his gaze.

"That cretin is mine," he spat. With that, the Saiyan Prince rocketed toward the battle. He had nothing left to lose.

Aria levitated into the air, floating peacefully up towards the tops of the cliffs. She closed her eyes, and let the warm rays of the sun fill her up with their energy. The world seemed to stand still as she rotated to expose her back to the sun. The tendrils of light filtered through her hair, creating a white aura around her body.

_Close your eyes, Goku._

Goku looked up, and noticed her hands reaching toward her face.

He suddenly realized what she was planning.

"MARCUS!" she roared, her eyes snapping open with a fiery new vengeance.

Marcus wheeled around, gawking at the Saiyan enveloped in the sunlight.

"_Saiyans never give up!_"

She placed her hands to her face, outstretching her fingertips.

"SOLAR FLARE!"

Marcus shrieked as the entire mountain range was bathed in a blinding white light. He lost all vision as his eyes burned and scorched in their sockets.

He felt a tug on his belt, and before he knew it, the Sensu beans were gone.

After throwing a bean to Aria, Goku disappeared as quickly as he came.

* * *

One thing that stood out in particular in Aria's training was Vegeta's expertise in exploiting weakness. Every day, he seemed to find something else wrong with her. First it was her inexperience, then her lack of strength, then her speed, until it boiled down to the thing she ate for breakfast. After rifling through her experiences with Vegeta, she found his weakness. It was staring her in the face this whole time, and only now could she properly capitalize.

The plan never involved issuing an attack, which was the key factor of its brilliance.

As Marcus gave his farewell monologue, Aria was busy staring at the sun. She fixated on it, almost obsessively. When she rose into the air to meet it, she rose just high enough for the angle to be perfect. Then, she used Krillin's Taiyouken to blind and disarm him, completely catching him off guard.

Retrieving the Sensu beans was child's play for Goku. Since he powered down, the Galaton couldn't not feel him until he snapped the cord. Marcus fired ki beams every which way, only to be dodged as Goku instantly transmitted away.

Aria knew that Marcus would not expect an attack from her in her normal form. From his perception, no one in his or her right mind, with little to no energy, would attempt to attack a super being such as himself. His arrogance was something she knew all too well. As masterful a strategist as Vegeta was, he constantly underestimated her, usually to his detriment. Aria quickly learned to push the envelope, to try and find that threshold that set her apart. She now knew that that threshold was not one of strength, or speed. It was of intelligence and fortitude. Using that technique was the moment she matched her ideal, and understood exactly how capable she was.


	18. Chapter 18: Master and Apprentice

The Z fighters gasped at the sight in the distance, only slightly pained by the bright light.

"That's not a ki blast, " Gohan breathed.

But both Aria and Goku's power levels were still nowhere to be found.

Goku appeared in the clearing by the crater, much to the surprise of the Z fighters.

"Dad!" Gohan and Goten cried in unison. The Son boys were nearly in tears as they embraced their father in a group hug.

"You're okay," said Goten happily.

Goku pushed his sons from him, and rushed to the side of the ailing youth at Piccolo's feet. There was almost no energy left. Goku reached into his gi and pulled out the pouch.

"You got the Sensu beans!" Piccolo exclaimed.

Goku remained silent as he pulled out a bean. He knelt down and cradled Trunks' head in his hand, placing the bean on his tongue. Trunks didn't move to swallow it.

"Come on," Goku pressed.

Trunks stirred, and began to softly chew the bean. The energy from the Sensu was instantly apparent. Trunks coughed as the venom drained out of the wound on his abdomen. The poison retreated from his veins, and his skin began to recover its color. The wound mended as the skin, bone and cartilage cracked and fused together. Within a few moments, only a light scar remained where open flesh once resided. His eyes fluttered open.

Everyone rushed to Trunks' side, smiling broadly at the recovered Saiyan.

His best friend's smile was the biggest of all. Goten put a hand on Trunks' shoulder.

"Welcome back, bro."

Trunks beamed and sat up, causing Goten wrap his friend in a bear hug. A sharp pain went down Trunks' spine, causing him to wince.

"Whoa, whoa, still sore," he choked, half laughing.

"Whoops!" Goten exclaimed, quickly releasing his grip. "I guess you need more than one."

Goku held out a second bean to Trunks. After consuming it, Trunks' muscles seemed to bulge as he was quickly restored to full health. He gazed happily at all of the familiar faces around him, but quickly found that two were missing. The mood dropped instantly with what he said next.

"Where is my father?"

* * *

Marcus writhed in agony; angrily expelling blasts all around him.

"WHERE ARE YOU, SAIYAN BRAT?"

Aria doggedly awaited her assailant, her body coursing with the rejuvenating energy from the Sensu Bean.

"You may have played a parlor trick on my eyes," he snarled, "But I will rip out your own with my bare hands!"

After her injuries partially healed themselves, she powered back up to Super Saiyan. Marcus sensed it instantly, and fired a strong blast in her direction. She easily evaded, smirking at her incapacitated foe, but her expression quickly turned sour as she saw his tail twitching back and forth in agitation. She silently swept through the air, and within milliseconds, she was behind the Galaton. With a vengeful smile, she formed a beam in her hand.

Marcus' ear-splitting howl could be heard for miles as Aria sliced through his tail, crying out "Incizor" with gusto as she did so.

Dark liquid spurted from the fresh stump on Marcus' backside. His mouth hung agape, not from the pain, but from rage and bewilderment. When he moved to twitch his familiar limb he felt only the pangs of torn muscle and open bone marrow. She was holding the lifeless appendage in her hand, with a bit of blood dotted on her cutting arm. After examining the tail with disgust, she quickly threw it to the ground. She scowled at the mass of flesh, internalizing how much suffering it must have caused. With a surge of power, she fired a ball of ki, reducing the once dangerous weapon to dust.

Aria did not fully understand what kind of state Marcus was in. While she was busy disintegrating the limb that nearly killed her lover, she did not notice the steady rise of energy emanating from the Galaton. Marcus' vision was back now, so he could fully look upon the Saiyan who mutilated him.

Up until now, Marcus had never experienced pure rage. Being Galaton, he remained in a constant state of sociopathic loathing for everyone and everything. This fuels the power of Suscitatis. But true anger has a _much_ more pronounced effect. Before she could retract her arm and dart away, Marcus' hand closed itself around her throat. He charged at the cliff wall, ramming her body into the bedrock.

Had her muscles not tensed, her neck would have snapped on contact. The Saiyan went limp at the impact, nearly unable to move from the shock.

"You…tricked…me."

His voice had deepened substantially, as if something else controlled him.

"Because of you, I have lost my tail. I feel…pain! _I DO NOT FEEL PAIN_!"

Marcus was slowly crushing her windpipe, and her screams of agony came out as little more than sharp whistling noises.

She regained a bit of her consciousness with the new rush of adrenaline, and tried to conjure another Incizor to free herself. Her arms were immediately pinned to her sides as Marcus sprang up and wrapped his legs around her upper torso.

"You will die, now!"

He raised his arm into the air, summoning a blast in his palm. Aria was nearly unconscious now. She felt his power now, nearly double what it was when she fought him at her absolute maximum. Even if she somehow managed to escape this, what chance did she have now?

"And there is not a force on this earth that can stop me!"

"Big Bang Attack!"

A bright stream of light crashed into the Galaton and Aria, wrenching them apart. Aria flew at least ten meters headfirst into the ground, while Marcus had only moved a few feet.

Marcus stared at the empty space in front of him in disbelief, gritting his sharp teeth. How could these Saiyans, a wretched waste of existence, make a mockery of him? The errors he'd made thus far were inexcusable. Not only had he allowed a seemingly frivolous last request that cost him his tail and the Sensu beans to his opponent, but he also did not even notice the approach of the other power level. What's more, this blinding blunder prevented his opponent's demise.

He whirled around to face his assailant. To his shock, he saw a golden-haired Vegeta with an outstretched hand and icy grimace spread across his face. The Prince did not say a word, letting the fiery ire in his eyes do the talking.

Aria coughed violently and managed to raise herself up to her hands and knees. She clutched at her neck, breathing heavily to restore oxygen to her system. Much to her chagrin, Marcus' ki was even higher after the intrusion. There was no way she could fight him on his own. She swallowed her pride and said a prayer of silent thanks for Vegeta, and got to her feet. In a split second, she was at Vegeta's side, ready to fight as a team.

"Good timing," she quipped, still panting.

Vegeta replied with a curt nod. He bent his knees and got into form, with Aria following suit soon after. They stared down the enraged being in front of them, with a combination of determination and caution.

The vein on the Galaton's forehead pulsed. There would be no more mistakes now, not with this much energy at his disposal.

Out of the blue, he began to laugh. He threw his head back, assaulting the air with gruff guffaws. Vegeta and Aria looked to one another dubiously, then back to the Galaton. When his laughter eventually subsided, he widened his stance along with his smile.

"It seems our destined match will partake after all. Fate has a sense of humor, no?"

Neither Saiyan returned the comment, perturbed by his sudden change of demeanor.

"I will say, though, that fate is in my favor today," he grinned, "It seems that my power has exceeded even my own expectations!"

Aria clenched her jaw, and Vegeta emitted a low growl. Marcus put a hand onto his hip, and cracked his neck.

"I suppose I have Katal to thank for that. With the fury I've gained from her removing my tail, I am stronger than I have ever been."

Marcus pointed one glove-like finger at Aria.

"Your luck ends here."

Aria powered up to a Super Saiyan 2. She didn't know if she could reach the next level again, but with Vegeta there, she was a little more confident. She nodded to her mentor, who flared his energy to match hers.

"We won't be needing it!" she roared.

They attacked together, each taking one side of the Galaton. After so many months together in the GR, they could work perfectly in sync. Yet, despite knowing each other's motions, it was incredibly difficult to keep up with Marcus' renewed strength and speed, even as a team. Aria alternated between punches and kicks to Marcus' left, but Marcus easily parried them. Vegeta did the same, and he too was stopped before he could land a blow. This went on for some time, until Marcus decided to go on the offensive. He disappeared from between the two Saiyans, and reappeared behind Aria. With a quick knee to her back, she was on the ground, leaving only Vegeta to contend with. The prince swung a right hook at the Galaton, only to have it miss, and to be cocked in the jaw. The force flung him skyward, straight into the awaiting Marcus. He careened into the ground after a crushing blow to the back.

* * *

"We have to help them!"

Trunks fought against the three Son family members restraining him.

"It's their fight, Trunks," Goten said through clenched teeth, barely able to keep hold of his arm, "And you barely survived the last time you faced him!"

"Maybe he's right you guys," said Krillin, a quiver in his voice. "You feel that creature's energy coming from over there? It _doubled."_

"We all feel it, Krillin," said Piccolo.

"So what are we waiting for?" Trunks yelled. "I dropped after less than a_ minute_ of fighting that thing. They might suffer the same fate!"

"And despite Aria and Vegeta's efforts, they're not even making a dent," added Krillin.

Trunks managed to wriggle free of Goten's grip, and shake off the other Son family members. He took to a run.

"Trunks!" Piccolo barked. "They can handle this on their own!"

Trunks froze mid sprint, and turned to face Piccolo.

"I won't sit back like a coward and watch them die. They didn't when I nearly bit the dust."

"You said it yourself," Piccolo shot back, "You couldn't even last a minute. How do you expect to help them?"

"I was impetuous and foolish," Trunks admitted, "But I promise that I won't make the same mistake!"

With that, he took off, heading for the mountains.

"Trunks, wait!" Goten cried, pouncing into the air after him.

Piccolo, Goku and Gohan got into formation, whizzed past the two demi-Saiyans and blocked their path.

"You will not go," Goku ordered, "I fought that monster before the power increase and could barely keep up. You aren't ready to handle him."

Trunks gritted his teeth.

"I've been training in the GR for a year, and got to 650g. That's more than my father!"

Goku's eyes narrowed.

"I wasn't talking to you."

Trunks blinked twice in surprise, and faced his companion.

"Dad!" Goten pleaded.

Goku shook his head.

"There is no way I'm letting you anywhere near him."

"What if we go as Gotenks?" the Son boy said hopefully.

"For the fusion to work, you need to be equal in strength."

Goten lowered his head. As much as he didn't want to acknowledge it, Trunks' power had grown considerably over the last year. He couldn't even compare anymore.

"Trunks, you go. Goten, Gohan, Piccolo and I will stay here. If one of your power levels drops off, we'll be right behind you."

The Saiyan was about to wave him off, when he suddenly remembered.

"Oh, wait a minute!" he exclaimed.

He pulled the bag of Sensu beans out of his gi, and tossed them to Trunks.

"There's three left, you'll be needing them."

Trunks nodded once, and rocketed toward the battlefield, flaring Super Saiyan. Piccolo disdainfully watched him go until he was out of sight.

"Is it just me, or have you lost your mind?" he seethed.

Goku replied with only a smile.

* * *

Aria was up again, and back on the attack. She put both arms out in front of her, and let loose a large mass of ki. Marcus twirled out of the way, letting the blast obliterate the opposing mountain. In a millisecond, he materialized in front of Aria and raised a fist to strike. She quickly dodged the punch and countered with a blow to his gut. The ki fist moved him slightly, but with little more than a backhanded slap, Aria was down, buried in a heap of rubble by the cliff side. Vegeta regained his footing, and sprinted at Marcus. He landed a kick straight to the Emperor's face, but it did little more than irritate him. Marcus came down hard on Vegeta's head, slamming him face first into the ground.

Aria was out of the cliff now, albeit a little dizzy.

"This is getting us nowhere," she muttered, rubbing her temple where the cliff impacted her skull. "Why is Vegeta still only an Ascended Saiyan?"

Just as the words left her lips, Vegeta's body hurdled towards her. The two collided, and were once again smashed into the cliff.

Marcus nearly howled with laughter.

"You two are far much more entertaining than I gave you credit for," he gasped through his cackles.

Aria shoved Vegeta off of her, letting him fall to the dirt.

"What are you waiting for, Vegeta?" she snapped.

Vegeta got to his feet and shook his head violently, dust flying in all directions.

"What the hell do you mean?"

"You're holding back. This isn't the time to save energy!"

Vegeta nearly bit through his tongue at the statement. Surely the girl couldn't be that dense. He was fighting at his absolute maximum. Anything less would be inexcusable.

"I don't know what planet you're on, but I fight to win. Marcus will not fall unless we throw everything we've got at him."

Aria glanced at the Galaton, who was still in a fit of giggles.

"But you aren't giving it your all. You can't be."

Vegeta glared at her, enraged.

"Just because I cannot transcend my current level does not mean that I am not doing _everything_ in my power to defeat this monster. How _dare _you question me!"

Aria stumbled backward, incredulous.

"You can't transform…"

Vegeta bit back a retort for time's sake, and responded only with a nod. Marcus was finally through with laughing, and bent his knees, ready to resume his barrage. Aria's heart sank, but she kept her composure.

"Fine then," she murmured, "Just a minor roadblock. We'll find some way around this."

Yet even she hardly believed her sentiment.


	19. Chapter 19: The TriTipped Spear

The battle raged on, to little avail. Marcus was so fast that the Saiyans could barely follow his movements. Whenever Aria or Vegeta attacked, they either missed, or didn't even faze him. Vegeta was badly injured now, likely suffering from internal hemorrhaging, not to mention the broken arm. Aria wasn't faring much better, sustaining extensive bruising, and a fractured shoulder and collarbone.

Marcus was getting irritated. Even though he was winning by a landslide, he couldn't manage to pin down either Saiyan. Their efforts as a duo actually posed a _challenge_. Vegeta and Aria were on opposite sides of the creature, panting heavily. In an attempt to destabilize the Galaton, Aria fired an Incizor blast. Marcus weaved out of the way, putting Vegeta straight in the beam's path. Aria's eyes narrowed. She had learned from her mistake on the beach eleven months before. Never again would she put anyone in harm's way. With a quick adjustment, she redirected her blast away from her master, letting it slice a portion of the cliff side.

Marcus' rage bubbled up inside of him as he once again felt the pangs of his lost tail.

"You ingrate!" he spat, "Those pesky little scythes won't save you."

Aria simpered beneath the blood and bruises on her face.

"Maybe not, but they've certainly got you scared."

Marcus huffed, insulted.

"It seems that the bee has lost its stinger," she taunted, wincing slightly from the searing pain in her shoulder, "Now he's a scared little fly."

Her sardonic remarks grated the Galaton, prompting a low, guttural sound from his throat.

"I will show you fear," he snarled.

Marcus leapt into the sky, and pierced through the air.

Aria wrenched her head upward to follow the Galaton, watching him fly higher and higher.

When he got about a half mile above the earth, he turned to face them.

"I am done with these games!" he roared, "Now I will put an end to this pathetic planet!"

Aria's stomach lurched, and Vegeta's eyes went wide.

Marcus got into a crouch, and concentrated his energy.

"Let's see how you fare against the wrath of the _Nigraclades!_"

His body flared with magenta sparks as it flowed with ki, and his power began to swell to astronomical proportions. Aria nearly fell to her knees from the sheer mass of energy. She could only watch in terror. Vegeta said nothing as his face blanched white. The sharp pain in his arm ran all the way down his spine, causing his body to go rigid. He coughed up some blood.

"Well, I'm not going to die today," he spat, raising the arm above his head.

Aria nodded and got into form. There was nothing left to do but try.

Marcus' blast was nearly ready now, impending and heinous. The ball itself was coal black, absorbing all of the light around it. It sparked and flared in the Galaton's hands, fueled by nothing but hatred. Marcus' icy smile completed the malevolent picture, the sparks glinting off of his sharp fangs.

Just then, a jolt jarred their sensory fields. Aria and Vegeta recognized it instantly.

"Trunks," they breathed in unison.

The lavender-haired youth's outline materialized in the distance. As he got closer to the battlefield, the Saiyans were relieved to find him at full health, without a scratch to be seen. The demi-Saiyan landed next to where his comrades stood, tensing nervously as he felt the creature's power at its zenith. Neither Aria nor Vegeta could place it, but something was different about the boy.

"You're okay!" Aria grinned broadly.

The boy looked up to the sky in horror as Marcus finished charging his attack.

"Not for long," Trunks said urgently, "Look out!"

"SAY GOODBYE!" the Galaton roared.

The ball in his grasp transformed into a gargantuan ebony beam, hurdling towards the earth like a missile from hell. The three Saiyans summoned ki in their hands, charging up to combat the calamitous ray. Trunks powered all the way up to the edge of Super Saiyan 2, stronger than Aria and Vegeta's current powers combined.

They released all at once, their blasts convening into a single stream by an unspoken command. Trunks' Buster Cannon formed the core of the stream, while Aria's Kaiomeha and Vegeta's Galick Gun ran up the flanks. Their portions of the blast were considerably weaker than Trunks', but they gave the beam just enough support to stop the black cataclysm.

When their beam collided with the Nigraclades, a thunderous crash sounded throughout the mountain range. Gigantic chunks of the mountains crumbled and cracked away, and the ground beneath their feet shook violently from the energy, breaking apart from the force. Howling winds tore the nearby forests to shreds, and the cliffs around them collapsed in a wave of mass destruction.

To Marcus' astonishment, the blasts were dead even, not one seeming to have a clear advantage.

"How can this be?" he yelled over the clamor, "No one can block my Nigraclades, _no one!_"

Sweat dripped down his jawline, and the veins in his arms created ridges atop his skin. He poured more energy into the beam, making it grow and push harder on the tri-form stream from the Saiyans.

The three kept firm under the pressure, pumping as much ki as they could. They leaned on one another to prevent from buckling. Aria watched the impending beam come closer and closer with each passing minute. They were giving it everything they had, and it still wasn't enough. Trunks howled and let loose another burst of energy, temporarily beating the blackness back. It barreled on as Marcus shoved back, hurling another wave into the void. Aria searched Marcus for a weak point, trying to find the Achilles heel of his attack, as Vegeta always taught her.

"I've got a plan!" she shouted. "But I need to know if you can hold off this beam."

"We're barely keeping it back as is!" Vegeta cried.

"If I can fly up and dislodge him, you might be able to overpower the beam. It's our only chance," Aria persisted.

"Or we could lose control and destroy the earth!"

He grunted, his knee smashing into the ground. As much as he hated it, he was almost out of energy.

"Will it work?" said Trunks through clenched teeth.

Aria frowned, still straining to hold up her Kaiomeha.

"It's our best bet. I can't give you much more than that."

Trunks mulled it over in his head. He didn't want to have to transform, not so soon. If anything, he didn't know if he could even sustain the form.

But there was no other option.

"I can give you a few seconds, maybe, will that be enough?"

Aria nodded. They were all goners if she couldn't finish that quickly.

Trunks flared his energy as he cried out. His hair grew out from his scalp, and the eyebrows on his face faded into his skin. Opalescent sparks flew everywhere, and the beam became enormous, once again forcing the Nigraclades back towards its source.

Aria let go of her Kaiomeha, and rocketed up to the Galaton. She hastily searched his stance as she flew, her eyes flashing when she found the weak spot. Marcus watched in fear and alarm as Aria aimed an incredibly powerful kick at his right side, right below his ribs. The impact caused him to falter, but it was all they needed.

With one last valiant push, Trunks and Vegeta bolstered the beam with a surge of white-hot ki.

Marcus couldn't defend against it; his concentration was broken.

Their blast, and his own, enveloped him as he let out a deafening wail. The mass shot up into the heavens like a bullet, eventually disappearing from sight into the inky blue sky.

* * *

Aria floated down to earth with a grin, lightly tapping onto the shattered rock face.

Trunks had his hands on his knees, his power down to just a normal Super Saiyan. Vegeta was almost unconscious on his back, gritting his teeth from the acute pain in his arm.

"I can't believe it…" she panted, "It actually worked."

Trunks reached into his pants pocket, pulling out the last three Sensu beans.

He knelt down next to the ailing prince, and handed him a bean. Vegeta stuffed the morsel into his mouth and chewed voraciously, eager for the effects to take hold. He then stood up and gave one to Aria, who popped it like a pain pill. The reviving energy filled her once more, cracking her fractures into place. Within a few seconds, she was restored to a suitable fighting power, though a far cry from her maximum. Vegeta was now back on his feet, and his arm was healed. He ground his teeth in frustration. A wave of irritation and bitterness washed over the Prince. Now that he was capable, he folded his arms.

Trunks' heart sank. Apparently the hatchet wasn't fully buried just yet.

"Father, I—"

"We'll talk about this later," the Prince returned coldly.

Trunks pursed his lips, not wanting to pique him any further.

Aria gazed up worriedly at the sky.

"He'll be back, and as mad as a hornet," she said solemnly. "I can sense his energy from here. His rage is—incredible."

Vegeta mimicked his pupil, almost grateful for the distraction from his shame.

"So, what now?" Trunks asked, seizing the opportunity to change the subject.

Aria remembered the move she developed during her time in solitude. At full power, it was a surefire clincher, and if Marcus were able to whip up another Nigraclades, there would be no excuse not to use it. But she didn't have enough energy to make it powerful enough. And there was Vegeta's weakened pride to consider.

Yet, when she noticed Trunks fumbling in the pouch, her heart skipped a beat.

_Another Sensu._

She shook her head, scolding herself. Trunks needed that Sensu. But if she could restore her full power, then her plan just might work.

"Trunks—" she began.

Suddenly, she stopped, frozen by the rapidly approaching power level from above.

Before Trunks could respond, or take the final Sensu, Marcus slammed his knee into the ground as he landed.

The malicious creature's irises seemed to burn an orange now, different from their original golden color. The blackness in them was darker too, devoid of any other emotion but ire.

"Destiny works in mysterious ways…" Marcus muttered, teeming with contempt.


	20. Chapter 20: Reckoning

The Galaton's pant legs were torn to shreds, and burn marks littered his frame.

He wore a cold scowl, and pieces were missing from the crest atop his head.

"A day of firsts," he said evenly, "First you manage to hit me, then you manage to remove my tail, avoid death from my venom—and now this."

He observed the dark liquid trickling down his arm and off of his fingers, frowning with disgust.

"I have forgotten what it's like to bleed…"

The unadulterated anger the Saiyans sensed was not readily apparent on the surface, which made him all the more disturbing to face. His fury was now completely fused with his energy, making him calm and unhindered by its blinding effects. Everything in the environment surrounding the warriors appeared to darken and get cold, as if the life of the area was being sucked dry.

"You're both feeling this, right?"Aria hissed to her comrades.

"Yeah, and I don't like it," Trunks murmured, bending down into a defensive stance.

Vegeta grimaced. They were running out of options, and fast. Had Trunks not shown up, they wouldn't have stopped Marcus' attempt to destroy the planet, and now the beast surpassed all three of them.

Aria didn't know what to do. They needed help, and she knew that, but her pride was becoming a major encumbrance. She'd already been saved twice, and it was painfully clear that she couldn't handle Marcus in a one-on-one confrontation. The faces of her parents, Vegeta and Trunks danced in her head with silent cries of pain as she envisioned their demise at the hands of Marcus.

_He will not kill one more living thing_, she vowed.

"Trunks, hand me the last Sensu."

He blinked twice in surprise, but obliged her.

She tossed the bean into her mouth without even flinching.

"Hey, what gives?" Trunks cried, "That was our last one, and I just saved your ass!"

Aria felt her inner power wrapping itself around her muscles, filling her with new strength.

"I can kill him, but I need time to charge my attack."

Trunks' eyes narrowed.

"You can't be serious."

"I developed a technique on my own that will definitely take him out for good."

Trunks took a deep breath, biting back a retort.

"How long?"

"Five minutes, maybe four."

The boy rolled his eyes.

"If I had that Sensu it would have been cake."

Aria shot him a look.

"I needed that Sensu to get back up to full power, otherwise this attack would be useless. Don't question my judgment, not now!"

Her tone startled both him and Vegeta. Aria was never that terse.

"If you can hold him off for five minutes, I can guarantee his death," she said, a bit calmer now.

"And if we can't?"

Vegeta glared at his pupil. Up to now she'd been shaky at best in her strategy, but he had a feeling that it would work. The sensation was foreign to him. It wasn't often that he felt trust.

"You can. I know you can," said Aria.

Marcus impatiently tapped his foot. Whatever they were plotting, he would not see it realized.

He dropped into his stance, ready to pounce. Aria lowered her voice to a whisper.

"When I give the signal, get as far away from Marcus as you can. This attack doesn't miss its mark, and I don't want either of you in the way of it."

Trunks and Vegeta nodded, eyes still locked on the Galaton.

"Good luck," she said softly.

With that, she shot upward, situating herself between two rugged mountain peaks.

Marcus's menacing eyes followed her, ever wary of her movements.

Trunks and Vegeta lunged at the creature, vexing him further. Marcus dematerialized into thin air, much to the dismay of the father-son duo.

Before Aria could even raise her arms to charge, Marcus was in front of her, arms crossed.

"Last I checked it was five _minutes_, not _seconds_," she cursed to herself.

Marcus' ears pricked up.

"What's this I hear?" the Galaton inquired.

"In five minutes, I will obliterate you," Aria spat back.

Marcus guffawed.

"Really now? It seems that I am in line to kill you and your lackeys within the next ten seconds."

His smile darkened.

"And don't think you'll be getting any _last requests_."

Aria's eyes narrowed.

"Don't you want to see what I'm really capable of?" she cajoled, "You said yourself that this fight has been disappointing thus far."

"Go on," the Galaton gestured to Aria.

"I am capable of far greater power," Aria chose her words carefully. "If you can withstand my ultimate attack, I will kneel at your feet and die a lowly wretch."

Vegeta heard her statement as he and his son flew up to meet the standoff. The man nearly bit through his tongue to control himself. No pupil of his would ever kneel to _anyone_.

"But if you can't, you will kneel before mine, and do the same."

Marcus stroked his chin. The offer was indeed a tempting one. He would certainly love to crush her skull into the dirt as she bowed before his greatness. He relished in the thought of her bones cracking under his feet, her blood pouring out of the wounds he would soon inflict. But he could just as easily torture her now. What would be the point in risking it? After all, she did cut off his tail. It didn't take the Galaton long to make his statement.

"Enticing, but I must decline."

The boys were in front of her in an instant.

"If you want to fight her, you'll have to get through us first," Trunks warned.

"If you can," Vegeta supplemented, with a dangerous glint in his eye.

"Adorable," said Marcus sarcastically, unimpressed.

_Start charging, _Trunks communicated mentally. _This is going to get dicey_.

Aria nodded, and began to concentrate.

* * *

Vegeta and Trunks shot synchronized ki blasts at Marcus. The Galaton whipped away as they hurdled past him, going off as they hit a nearby mountainside. The Saiyans hurried after him, continuing to pursue him with a flurry of blasts and charges.

Marcus was in no mood for games. He stopped dead in his tracks and parried the discharges with a few well-placed flicks of his wrist.

"Pitiful," he grumbled.

Aria's energy was spiking at a tremendous rate. A bright blue aura surrounded her as she raised her arms parallel to the ground. Bright sparks emitted from her fingertips, and a chilling breeze swept through the pass, seeming to come out of nowhere. Marcus suddenly felt tense as a feeling of dread washed over him. He recognized that image from Jeiden's vision.

Up until now, he kept a level head. But the growth rate of her ki was a definite cause for alarm. If she continued at that rate for five solid minutes, she would easily overshadow him.

And he had no intention to let her make good on her threat.

He bobbed and weaved until he reached the two Saiyans, throwing two chops to strike them down. The first impacted Vegeta and sent him flying, but Trunks managed to dodge and blocked his path.

Marcus could hardly believe what was happening. He had the upper hand, a power so massive he could swallow worlds like gumdrops. Yet these Saiyans were keeping up!

"Out of my way," he snarled.

"Make me!" Trunks shot back.

He threw a medium-sized ball of ki at Marcus, who couldn't avoid it at such a close range. The blast detonated on contact, sending up plumes of smoke. Marcus whisked his way through the veil, more aggravated than damaged.

"You little punk!" he barked. "You're going to pay dearly—"

"Miss me, cretin?"

Just then, Vegeta rammed into Marcus' side full force, catching the Galaton off guard.

Marcus latched onto Vegeta and kneed him in the stomach, temporarily incapacitating the Prince. Trunks rushed in to help. The Galaton threw his head forward, smashing into Trunks' own, making the boy reel backward.

Dark clouds began to converge overhead. The forceful air surrounding Aria seemed to beat in time with her heart. The electric currents around her palms and fingertips lit up like stars, and whipping gales formed a protective sphere around her. Flashes of light could be seen in the sky, and rumbling thunder echoed through the mountains. Gargantuan amounts of energy coursed through the core of Aria's body, and settled into a well in the pit of her stomach.

Marcus continued to batter Vegeta and Trunks, desperately attempting to reach the super cell in the sky. The Saiyans were getting weak, making it much more difficult to keep up with his attacks. Trunks fired a kick to unhinge the Galaton, but Marcus countered by elbowing the boy in the face. Be some miracle, Vegeta managed to get a hold of Marcus' other arm, and started to swing. Before Marcus could leave the Saiyan's grasp, he whipped both legs around and sent Vegeta barreling into his son.

They recovered quickly, and kept their blows coming.

Vegeta and Trunks were fighting at their peaks, but could hardly manage to weaken the creature. Yet the more they fought, the more Vegeta noticed something off with Marcus. To his surprise, the Galaton was getting _sloppy_.

A drop of blood dripped down Marcus' chin, not from a strike, but from his fangs cutting into his tongue. The inhibitor of rage no longer plagued him, yet he was making the most basic of fighting mistakes. Was he truly that rusty after so many years of oppressive destruction, unchallenged by any foe?

The Emperor found himself fighting against a prevailing wind. While the Saiyans did not deal him damage, they still pushed him back with gusts of force. His anger took hold, and he was back in action. He took on Trunks first, knocking him out of the air to the bedrock below with a violent kick to his side and a hammer to his head, breaking two ribs and rendering the boy immobile. Vegeta followed the same trajectory soon after with a forceful blow to his shoulder, cracked on contact. Now that Trunks and Vegeta were out of the way, Marcus was ready to put an end to his enemy. But when he went to attack her, he froze to the spot.

The sky had gone pitch black, save the occasional lightning in the abyss. The wind screamed in the pass, nearly overpowering the cacophony above. Aria was enveloped in brilliant blue, jolts of electricity pulsing from her frame. Her pupils and irises had faded into the sea of white in her eyes, and her golden hair stood starkly on end. The area was coated with a visible static, tiny flickers charging the particles in the air.

His eyes bulged at the sight of his nemesis.

For the first time in his life, Marcus felt fear. It cut him to his core, tearing through his chest as it constricted his airways. His mouth was agape, and his eyes, while still holding wrath, were contracted with terror. He now realized what was happening.

He was going to die.

And there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Aria's arms slowly rose to meet, her hands forming a chalice. The tips of her thumbs and pinky fingers touched together, sealing the energy circuit.

The Saiyan Prince writhed in pain on the ground, squinting his eyes open to see Aria's blurred form in the sky, stunned by what he saw and felt. Even he could have never imagined the colossal event that transpired before his eyes, at the hands of his own pupil. He managed a faded laugh.

_Go get 'em, kid._

Aria's energy now eclipsed the Galaton.

Everything she had worked for, everything she had fought for, every planet destroyed by his mere existence, and everyone who died at his hand, would be avenged and fulfilled in this moment.

She was ready.

"_Lightning…FLASH_!"

A mighty bolt erupted from her outstretched palms, and there was only light.


	21. Chapter 21: Resolutions

The wave collided, and the world around him faded to black. While he physically _felt _the pain, his mind could not register it. Every time he destroyed a planet, millions of people would suffer this fate. White-hot electricity burned and scorched every cell in his body, ripping apart the very fabric of his being. The entirety of his existence was amounted to nothing but hatred and death, devoid of any meaning or purpose. Now as the icy fingers of the void took hold, he welcomed them with bitter resignation.

When the smoke cleared, not a trace of him remained. Every cell in his body had been disintegrated to nothing, and the cooling breeze in the pass blew away what particles that were left.

* * *

Trunks' eyes fluttered open. He heaved himself up to his hands and knees and took a look around, wincing from the pain of his broken ribs. The sky was a pale blue, and the sun was hidden behind a sheet of clouds, just now dispersing. The clouds parted, letting streams of golden sunshine illuminate the broken battlefield. Entire mountains were reduced to rubble, and dust and debris littered the canyon.

He gasped when he saw Aria in the sky, the pass still echoing traces of her war cry. The Galaton's energy signal had disappeared. She did it!

Vegeta tossed off some rocks that situated themselves on top of him, and got to his feet.

He broke into a devilish grin upon no longer sensing the creature.

Aria was still in the sky, gasping from the tremendous exertion. Her hair was ebony again, and was matted and tangled from the wind. She dripped with sweat, and her muscled burned from using her body as a vessel for an electrical current. When she finally cleared her head, she scanned the area. Her eyes lit up like diamonds.

Marcus was gone.

She threw an aching fist into the air and let out a joyful shout. It was finally over.

After a few moments of bliss, she floated down to where Trunks and Vegeta were situated. She fell flat on her back onto the ground next to Trunks, nearly delirious with a combination of exhaustion and glee. She let out a boisterous laugh, accompanied by a few tears of relief. Trunks tried to join in, but the pain in his ribs restrained him.

She looked up wistfully at the sky.

_I hope I made you proud._

A little flicker entered her eye.

_All of you._

Somewhere in Otherworld, two Saiyan ancestors were smiling broadly.

Vegeta stood above the two, still holding his arm on the side of his broken shoulder.

"Well, you actually managed to kill him."

He smirked, but not the way he usually did. Aria noticed it instantly, even in her frayed state. She understood why Trunks fought for this so hard. It was almost impossible to attain Vegeta's admiration, but boy was it satisfying when you did.

And now she was going to revel in it.

"I guess I did. Pretty sweet little technique, huh?"

His smirk turned sour, and he said nothing.

"Come on, admit it."

Still nothing.

Suddenly, Aria heard Goku's voice calling out in the distance. Five figures appeared over the ridge, honing in on the battered Saiyans. All had bright smiles on their faces, but it was Krillin who could hardly contain himself.

"That was incredible!" he burst out as the group landed. "I've never seen anything like it. I mean, wow!"

Aria grinned sheepishly, then coughed to clear her throat.

"Finally some recognition," she joked.

Vegeta rolled his eyes, cursing the pain in his shoulder. Trunks spat up some blood and clutched at his chest.

"Hey, don't we get a bit of credit?" he forced a chuckle.

Aria laughed and grasped his hand.

"I couldn't have done it without you."

She gazed up at Vegeta.

"Both of you."

"Oh man," said Goku, scratching the back of his head, "You guys are looking worse for wear. Looks like a trip to the lookout is in order."

"Where's that?" asked Aria dizzily.

"Yeah, Dende'll fix you right up."

"Who's that?"

"You'll see," Goku said impishly, "Everyone, gather around me. Make sure we're all touching."

He bent down and placed a hand on both Aria and Trunks. The rest of the group gathered around Goku, each one grabbing onto his shoulders.

"Here we go!"

"But wh—" Aria began.

Before she could finish her sentence, they disappeared.

* * *

She gasped as she took in the sight.

They rematerialized in front of a temple, made of white stone and a three-tier domed tower in the center. There was a covered archway underneath the first gold dome, and the carpeted walkway leading to it was lined with palm trees. The rest of the massive structure was slightly hidden behind a string of young pines, with two smaller domed areas flanking the larger. The white tile surrounding the palace reminded her of the GR; even the coldness on her skin brought back chills. She could hardly believe her senses.

Two shapes appeared in the archway, and began walking towards the group. One was a medium-sized, green man that starkly resembled Piccolo. The other was a short, plump creature with jet-black skin, wearing a turban over his pointy ears and harem pants.

"Goku, Gohan, everyone!" the green man beamed, "It's so good to see you all again. You must tell me everything about the battle that just occurred!"

"Hey Dende," Goku said happily, "I guess it was hard _not_ to sense, huh?"

"That dark energy," Dende shuddered, "It was so horrible. But that odd power level I sensed that extinguished it; it wasn't you, was it?"

Goku shook his head. He gestured to Aria, who was still breathing hard on the ground.

"Extraordinary!" Dende breathed.

"We'll tell you everything," Goku said quickly, "But some of us are pretty beat up. I barely did any fighting, so don't worry about me."

Dende snapped into focus.

"Of course! I'll get right to work."

He knelt down next to Aria and put both hands in front of her body. Healing pulses flowed from his palms and into her, filling her with refreshing energy. Her eyes snapped open and her breathing slowed to normal. When he was finished with her, he moved onto Trunks, and eventually Vegeta.

"This is great!" Aria chirped, flexing her fingers. "It's like a Sensu bean on steroids."

Vegeta rolled his freshly healed shoulder in its socket, testing it out with a few forward punches. Trunks got to his feet and inhaled deeply, relieved to find his ribs fully healed.

"Thanks, Dende. We sure owe you," he said.

Dende smiled.

"You three saved the Earth, it's the least I can do."

He diverted his gaze to Aria.

"So you are the source of that miraculous power level?"

Aria grinned sheepishly.

"I don't believe we've met," he continued.

"Oh, right!" she laughed, "I'm Aria, Aria White."

The plump figure to Dende's side said nothing, maintaining a pleasant smile.

"So, who is this?" asked Aria.

"I am Mr. Popo," said the short man, "I serve as an assistant to the guardian of the earth. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure's—wait, WHAT? The guardian of the earth?"

She looked perplexedly at Dende.

"Then why didn't you come with us to the battlefield? You must be very powerful!"

Dende blushed.

"Not really. It doesn't work that way."

Aria looked down at her feet.

"Oh. Well, thank you so much for healing me, sir."

"Please, call me Dende."

"Alright."

Aria put a hand on her chin.

"So, how does being the guardian of the earth work?"

Dende went on to explain the power of the Dragonballs, the wishes that could be made and so on. Aria had a basic understanding thanks to her Saiyan companions, but Dende had a much deeper knowledge. She listened intently throughout.

* * *

Vegeta had finished his exercises, and had made his way over to confront his son. He folded his arms.

"We have unfinished business."

Trunks' heart sank. As usual, the glory of victory didn't last long.

"Let's have it then," he grumbled.

The two meandered away from the group, walking side by side.

"When did you first ascend?"

"Just in that moment," Trunks answered honestly, "I knew I could for some weeks, but it didn't feel right at the time."

"And you kept this from me because?"

Trunks sighed.

"Because I didn't think you'd care, or you'd hate me for it."

The boy had a point. At the time, in his state of mind, he probably wouldn't have cared.

"Hatred of an ascension is a privilege reserved for Kakarot alone," Vegeta murmured.

There was an awkward silence between the two for a moment.

"So?" Trunks eventually said.

Vegeta shrugged.

"So what?"

Trunks let him off with a smirk.

A loud gurgling echoed all the way across the lookout. Everyone turned to stare at the source.

"Man, I'm starving!" Aria boomed, "Do you guys have any food?"

"Is it too much trouble, Dende?" asked Gohan, noting his own empty stomach.

The other Saiyans' stomachs began to rumble too. They hadn't eaten since the early dawn, and it was almost evening.

"Not at all," Dende declared. "As most of you know, Mr. Popo is an excellent cook."

The Namek nodded to the short man, who promptly exited to begin preparations.

* * *

The banquet that evening was a lavish one. A hundred plates piled high with exquisite cuisine lined a long, elegant table inside the temple. Goku challenged Aria to a rice-eating rematch, only to be outdone once again after the twenty-third bowl. The patrons at the table recounted the battle earlier that day, and exchanged jokes at a certain deceased Galaton's expense. Aria pulled a spot on impression; causing half the table to snort out whatever food they were eating. Many laughs were shared, and so were heartwarming stories of battles past.

Aria listened in wonder as Gohan told the story of the Cell Games, and Goku went into detail about his conflict with Frieza. Goten and Trunks took turns re-enacting scenes from their battles as Gotenks against Majin Buu, even performing a mock fusion dance, much to Aria's amusement. But throughout the meal, she couldn't help but stare at Trunks. Both exchanged flirty glances, which Vegeta (who was sitting beside him) caught on to immediately.

"Alright, what was that?"

Aria blushed, and shoved a cupcake into her mouth.

Trunks stifled his laughter.

"Then you'll answer me," Vegeta snapped, glaring at the boy.

Trunks snatched a Danish from a nearby tray, and Vegeta caught his arm.

"Don't even think about it."

"It was nothing, really," Trunks said nervously, "Let go!"

"Aw Vegeta, let the lovebirds do their thing," Krillin interjected.

Aria nearly choked on her food.

"K—Krillin!" she coughed.

"Aha, I knew it," Vegeta sneered.

"So what?" Trunks objected, wrenching at his arm now, "Can you _please_ let go?"

Vegeta obliged the boy, and crossed his arms.

"Hmph. Could have done better," he mumbled.

Aria scowled, insulted.

"I'm sure Bulma would say the same about you!" she retorted.

"How dare you!" Vegeta snarled, shooting up out of his seat.

"Come on big guy," she taunted, rising from her own chair and gesturing him forward.

Before anyone could object, Vegeta launched himself clear over the table. The two careened backward, and began a small brawl.

Trunks put his head in his hands.

"Why me?"

The table swelled with laughter.

The brawl ended as quickly as it began, with Aria putting Vegeta in a headlock.

She gave him a noogie and set him free, after a few minutes of violent swearing on the part of the Saiyan prince.

The meal was over, and everyone broke off into smaller groups for conversation.

Aria and Trunks peeled off to the outer bit of the Lookout, Vegeta's eyes burning holes in the backs of their necks.

They sat on the edge, letting their legs dangle miles above the Earth. The moon was high in the sky, casting an eerie glow on the white tile.

"Does he ever let up?" she joked.

"Never," Trunks said with a small smile.

Their hands eventually found each other, clasping together. Aria laid her head on Trunks' shoulder.

"So what happens now?" she said softly.

Trunks nuzzled his nose into her hair, gently kissing her head.

"Life goes on."


	22. Epilogue

Fifteen years have passed since the Galaton Emperor threatened to destroy Planet Earth. Fifteen years since humanity was unknowingly saved yet again due to the fortitude and bravery of the Saiyans. It seemed like a world ago.

Aria Briefs was busy getting ready for the annual family portrait event. Getting ready usually consisted of her playing a large-scale game of hide and seek, with her as the seeker. This task had gotten infinitely more difficult after her father-in-law decided to teach the kids how to suppress their power levels, something she was adamant about waiting to do until they were older. Their newly built house was large, so it always took some effort to find the kids, but this was ridiculous. She wrenched open doors and got on her hands and knees to check under the beds, all the while grumbling to herself about the whole thing. Truthfully, she did enjoy the challenge of finding them, but it was the element of time that concerned her. The photographer was going to be there in fifteen minutes, and she hardly had time to brush out her hair, much less put on something suitable. She moved onto the next bedroom, after finding nothing in the last guest suite. Her movements were nearly second nature. First there was the bed, then the closet, then behind the chair, and so on.

Suddenly, she heard a small shuffling sound. Her ears pricked up, listening hard. The room was silent.

There it was again, coming from her right.

She slowly crept out of the room peering down the hallway. A light thumping could be heard from the next room. She tiptoed toward the room, gradually reaching for the handle. Two little red shoes swished under the bed skirt as she opened the door. Aria beamed in triumph.

"Jeida," she put on her best mom tone.

A little girl emerged from beneath the bed, giggling. Her deep violet hair was in a tangled heap atop her head, and her black skirt was littered with lint. Her coal eyes shone brightly as she scrambled to her feet in the spot of sunlight coming from the window.

"Where is your brother?"

Jeida shrugged her shoulders.

Aria pinched her eyebrows together.

"Which direction did he go?"

Jeida looked down at her feet, shaking her head. Aria eyed her skeptically.

"Come on then."

"He told me not to say!" she squeaked.

Aria sighed.

"So the truth comes out. Where is he?"

"Nu-uh! He'll be mad at me!"

"Not as mad as your father and I will be."

Jeida plopped onto the ground and folded her arms, turning away with a 'humph.'

Aria grimaced, yet another tag-team bout of mischief by her kids.

"Jeida Briefs, you tell me where he is this instant, or you can kiss your first gravity session goodbye!"

Jeida's eyes grew to the size of golf balls.

"NO FAIR!"

She curled her lip in contrite, twirling her finger on the carpet. She eventually pointed to the window. Outside the window lay the vast expanse of West City, tapering off into a long stretch of field, with a lining of trees in the distance.

_Of course. _

Aria held out her hand to Jeida, who hesitantly grasped it. They walked to the front foyer together. Suddenly, a stark businessman came through the front door.

"Daddy!" Jeida squealed with delight.

She ran to him and buried her head in his khaki slacks.

"And where were you hiding?" he cooed, picking her up and cradling her on his hip.

"Under the bed, as usual," Aria replied, placing a gentle peck on his lips.

Trunks grinned fondly at his wife, pulling a bit of her hair back behind her ear. He looked around the foyer for that familiar tuft of black, spiky hair.

"Where's—"

"He's in the hills, by the brook as always. Should I fetch him?"

Trunks shook his head.

"No, I'll get him. You need to get ready," he chuckled.

Aria looked down at her raggedy ensemble of brown shorts and a cropped yellow tank top. Her always-present black leather gloves were still lightly damp from training that morning, and she noticed the knotted tangles in her hair. Bra approached from the kitchen in a gorgeous chiffon gown, with her turquoise hair in tied back halfway, and makeup done to perfection.

"You are coming with me this instant!" Bra commanded, "We have got to get you something to wear!"

"I suppose," Aria sighed, grinning fondly at her Dragon Crest Ring.

* * *

The tranquil music of the stream sounded throughout the shady glen. Birds were singing a tune on the light breeze, and the leaves rustled quietly in the trees. Glints of sunlight reflected off of the surface of the brook, distorted by the ripples. A small boy, not much older than six or seven, sat peacefully at the edge of the stream, lightly dipping his toes in the water. His miniature loafers and white cotton socks were strewn across a boulder, and his slacks were rolled up above his knees. The boy let the soft sand glide through the crook of his hand, gazing absently at the spring sky. Billowy, white clouds cast shadows on the landscape, veiling the sun as they passed overhead. He sighed, twirling a finger around in the sand.

Light footsteps padded on the grass behind him, causing him to jump and whirl around.

"Don't sneak up on me like that," he huffed, relaxing his shoulders.

His father stood in front of him, a small smile on his face.

"Vetero, you know what day it is."

Vetero rolled his eyes and sat back down on the bank.

"But it's so stupid. I look like a monkey in this thing."

Trunks knelt down and put a hand on his shoulder, brushing off a bit of sand.

"You look fine. You know, the ladies love a man in a suit…"

Vetero turned bright red and tackled his father. They rolled around together in the grass, laughing uproariously. Vetero climbed on top of Trunks' chest, nudging his head under his father's chin. Trunks beamed from ear to ear. Moments like this were his favorite part of the day. They lay together for some time, looking up wistfully at the clouds.

"Come on, we need to get back," Trunks said finally, ruffling his son's hair.

"Do we have to?"

"Sorry, kiddo."

Vetero frowned, and lifted himself off of the familiar chest. He smirked, and took off flying towards the house.

"Last one there's a rotten egg!" he called, giggling as he went.

Trunks leapt to his feet, and sailed after him.

"Then prepare to be rotten, little Saiyan!"

* * *

The crew had almost finished setting up the lighting on the opposite side of the house, and the photographer was intricately positioning the camera. He examined his watch, and pinched his eyebrows together. Yet again, the Briefs' were late. Though he couldn't really complain, after all they were paying him a staggering sum for one set. He sat on the lawn chair, tapping his foot. He pulled the bill of his baseball cap down below his eyes, and leaned back in the seat, folding his arms behind his head.

"Best take a snooze boys," he sighed, "We'll be waiting a while."

Jeida was chasing a white insect through the flowers in the yard when she saw her father and brother whiz towards the house. She squealed in delight, completely forgetting her prior fascination with the bug. Vetero shot her a look when he landed, and she stuck out her tongue in return.

"Where's mom and aunt Bra?" asked Vetero.

"Inside, getting ready," Trunks replied, "While we're waiting for her, how about going to get Grandpa at the main house?"

Vetero shuddered. Visiting Grandpa on picture day was a fruitless endeavor.

"Do I have to?"

"You can smack him if he doesn't want to," said a feminine voice, coming from the open screen door.

Aria stood in a strapless, violet sundress, with the fabric billowing all the way to the ground. True to form, she still had on her leather gloves. Her hair was brushed out, but still remained bushy and tousled. She had on minimal makeup, only some to cover the minor blemishes from battle. Bra stepped out behind her.

"Mommy, you look so pretty!" Jeida squealed, clapping her tiny hands together. "Why don't you dress like that all the time?"

Aria giggled.

"Well, some of us don't like to train in dresses. Unlike aunt Bra…"

"Hey!" Bra retorted, "This isn't training, this is fashion."

Trunks beamed at his beautiful wife and sister.

"You ladies look lovely."

Aria simpered, flashing a playful curtsy.

"And you look positively dapper."

Trunks stooped down to hug the little girl in her arms.

"Now you and your brother go fetch Grandma and Grandpa."

Jeida bit her lip. Grandpa hated his event even more than she did.

"Come with us, please?"

"Sweetheart, Grandpa will listen to you much better than me."

"Then why does he always go so hard on us in training?"

"That's his way of showing that he loves you, now off you go."

The two three-quarter Saiyans looked at each other, and then at the main house. They reluctantly walked across the grounds, murmuring to one another.

When they knocked on the door, Bulma opened it up, and beamed at the sight of her grandchildren.

"My, my! Don't you two look grown up."

The kids returned halfhearted smiles. Bulma eyed the little girl, and threw her hands up in delight.

"Jeida, you look fabulous! A fashionista in the making!" she exclaimed.

Jeida blushed and hid a triumphant grin.

Bulma took a closer look at the boy, and gasped.

"Oh Vetero…" Bulma breathed, "You look just like Grandpa Vegeta."

"I'm not old like him!" Vetero retorted, hands on his hips.

"WHAT WAS THAT?" a loud, gruff voice sounded from inside.

Vegeta walked to the door, an angry scowl on his face. He was dressed in a sharp suit and tie, something Bulma inevitably picked out. Vetero shrunk back, and looked down at his feet.

"Would you care to explain how looking like me an insult?"

Vetero refused to open his mouth.

"Lighten up, will you?" said Bulma sharply.

"Don't tell me to 'lighten up.' I refuse to partake in this nonsense again! How you managed to get me into this ridiculous garb is beyond me."

Bulma rolled her eyes.

"Every year…" she muttered, "Let's go, grumpy."

* * *

Aria and Trunks sat on a swinging chair under an awning in the backyard, rocking back and forth. Bra had decided to make herself busy and berate the cameramen for slacking off, so it was just the two alone. With a family like the Briefs, it was rare to find a quiet moment. They looked up at the sky together, watching the clouds pass silently overhead.

"Can you really believe it's been fifteen years?" said Aria softly.

Trunks smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Fifteen wonderful years."

Aria nuzzled his nose with hers and rested her head on Trunks' shoulder, letting her fingers intertwine with his.

"It seems just like yesterday," she sighed, "That I was in the GR with Vegeta, training until I passed out."

Trunks chuckled.

"That man has no limit, I swear," she continued. "I remembered getting tossed out of there after day one. I practically had to beg him to take me back."

Trunks raised his eyebrows.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. I was on the grass, whimpering like a puppy. Somehow I got to bed, but I can't remember for the life of me how I got there."

Trunks smirked to himself.

"Someone must have carried you."

Aria shrugged her shoulders.

"But that wasn't even the weird part. The next morning, I got up and saw a note on my bedside table… I remember it very clearly. _Saiyans never give up_."

"Why haven't you ever brought this up before?" asked Trunks, twirling a strand of her hair.

"I dunno," she said, "I guess it just never really occurred to me to share. I haven't told anyone that story."

She giggled.

"Hell, I never even figured out who wrote the thing."

An odd glint shone in Trunks' eye.

"Interesting."

The Saiyans were content to sit together in silence for a time, enjoying the blissful serenity of the early spring noon. Though, the quiescence was quickly broken as they heard padded footsteps coming from the main house.

"We're here, now lets get this over with," Vegeta grumbled.

* * *

Within a few minutes, everything was in place. The photography equipment was set up just so, and the cameramen hurried about, tweaking settings and adjusting the height of the lamps surrounding the Briefs family.

"Is everyone here?" said the primary photographer, a bit tersely.

Bulma looked around and did a quick headcount.

"Yup, we're all accounted for."

"Excellent, get ready."

The photographer stepped behind the camera, and began pressing buttons.

Trunks put a hand to the side of his mouth.

"Psst."

Aria glanced over at Trunks, mouthing "what," and gesturing toward the camera.

"Guess who wrote the note?"

Aria tilted her head. Trunks smirked and gave a playful wink. Her eyes widened as she gasped.

"Say cheese!"

The camera flashed.

To this day, the portrait is on the Briefs' living room wall. Bulma and Bra looked regal that spring morning. They wore broad smiles, and not a hair was out of place. Vegeta had his arms folded, and wore his trademark grimace. Vetero and Jeida were both cocking ridiculous faces, but looked adorable nonetheless. Trunks had a hand on Jeida's shoulder, and an impish grin on his face.

Aria had the biggest openmouthed smile she'd ever worn, surprise and laughter coming forth all at once.

* * *

**Addressing Inconsistencies**

I tried to respect canon as much as possible while creating this story, but as with many creative endeavors, things go a little differently than how they are originally planned. Below are a couple things one may notice and flame, so I'm addressing them here.

1. The moon. Yes, I know that Piccolo blew up the moon in the series. I needed the moon as a romantic allegory, so there.

2. Trunks' personality. As a child in the series, he comes off cocky and stingy. I didn't watch GT, so I have no idea how his adult personality formed. I guess you could say I took some creative license and molded him to be kind of a mix of his Future counterpart and his current-timeline self.

3. Vegeta and Trunks' awkward relationship. Again, I took a bit of creative license. In the series they seem to grow a lot closer after Vegeta's little epiphany during the Majin Buu saga. For lack of a better explanation, I put the kibosh on it. Just know that it was a conscious choice that made things more interesting.


End file.
